Bans for plastic products

A large amount of plastics is used throughout the world and then – after only using it once – disposed of. According to the European Commission (EC), only about a third of total plastic waste is recollected and recycled. The majority ends up in dumping grounds, landfill sites or the environment. Plastics will then break down only very slowly and accumulates, especially in seas and on beaches. Up to 85% of all washed up waste in the EU is made of plastic, of which approximately half is considered disposables.

The plastic can be dangerous for birds, fishes and other sea creatures, because they eat or get tangled up in it. Plastic can also accumulate in fish and subsequently land on our plates. As a response, the EC and the environment committee have proposed a string of measures to reduce plastic waste. This draft proposal has been accepted by the delegates in Strassburg. The strongest effects for consumers will likely be bans on disposable products, such as straws, plastic cutlery and plates, as well as cotton swabs. The ban is supposed to only affect such products where an alternative is already available. For instance, in the case of plastic straws, the alternative would be ones made of paper or of more rigid, reusable plastic.
Another goal is to reduce the waste from cigarettes. The filters often contain some plastic material and single cigarette butt can pollute up to 1000 liters of water. The goal would be to reduce the amount of waste from this source by 80% until 2030.

A possible means for EU member states can be reduction targets for such plastic products which can not be easily replaced with other materials, such as food containers like boxes for sandwiches or wrappings for items like fruits, vegetables or desserts. All of the EU member states should decrease the use of one-way plastic items by a quarter by the year 2025, by means of, for instance, price increases or commercials for alternative products. Now it is up to these member states to find a common ground.

Another suggested option to reach the goals is to sensitize via education for product users. Information on boxes could help, as an example. The contained information would be along the lines of how to properly dispose or what the possible hazards could be, if this specific product ends up in the environment. One example could be to kindly ask people to not let balloons fly freely anymore.
This specific example is met with some criticism, however by Peter Liese, CDU representative. Balloons are such a small, insignificant part of the overall problem, which is why he says: “I consider this to be an excessive measure when people, specifically children can no longer have any fun.”

One additionally proposed measure is the inclusion of producers in paying for any cleaning expenditures, instead of mainly taxpayers and the tourism industry who currently pay for these. Included in this measure would also be producers of fishing nets containing plastic components.

For Greenpeace, the proposed measures do not go far enough, however. One specific concern according to Thilo Maack, marine biologist for the NGO, is that the definition of disposable plastic goods is too narrow, so that members of the plastic industry can slip through on a loophole. “With this proposal, firms could simply ignore the reduction goals by labelling their products as reusable, even if they are actually disposable plastic cups or straws.”
Similar to this notion, the Grüne Partei in Germany has already demanded further steps after the proposal was accepted in the EU parliament. The party’s president, Robert Habeck told the German Press Association that this could only be the starting point. “To really reduce the use of plastics, we need to radically alter the course.” He demands that all plastic products that are produced in the EU are reusable, completely degradable or that they can be recycled in a cost-efficient manner. The required means to such goals would be, according to Habeck, a tax on disposable plastic products and a microplastic ban in cosmetics.

Members of the plastics industry have a different stance on the topic and are worried that the EC’s proposal is premature. According to the European Packaging Institute pack2go, new laws were being implemented without considering the consequences. The drastic reduction in plastic use may lead to losses in the food industry or problems in food hygiene. Pack2go stressed that today, millions of Europeans used plastic packaging for foods or drinks on a daily basis.

Source (German): http://www.chemie.de/news/1158062/kommen-verbote-fuer-strohhalme-und-wattestaebchen.html?WT.mc_id=ca0259
http://www.chemie.de/news/1158077/eu-plaene-zum-plastik-koennen-nur-der-anfang-sein.html?WT.mc_id=ca0259