Eco Factor: Industry giants pledge to reduce the use of plastic bags in order to reduce toxic plastic waste.
Plastic bags are jeopardizing both humans and wildlife in a big way. The one-time-use poly bags are discarded within 20 minutes of purchase. The real problem begins after that and becomes perpetual since plastic bags take around 1000 years to rot away. The industry giants have finally responded to the hue and cry raised by the “Banish the Bag” campaign by the Daily Mail. They have come up with a number of promises to cut back on waste caused by throwaway plastic bags, which are doled out for free in shops across the world for free.
Plastics 20-20 Challenge:
The industry has finally got together by way of a new recycling campaign called Plastic 20-20 challenge. The plan is to reduce the environmental footprint of plastic bags by 50% over the next few years. This will be achieved by making the bags thinner and lighter. Besides, recycled plastic will replace freshly manufactured plastic. A voluntary code of conduct will be followed with the retailers to use bags wisely. The industry will also support waste and official litter schemes. The target is to double plastic packaging recycling.
The giant’s Initiative:
Marks & Spencer has pioneered the initiative taken to cut back on plastic bag use. It simply charged 5p per plastic bag at all its outlets from May 2008. The results were amazing, since the company witnessed a reduction of 80% in numbers of plastic bags doled out at its stores. Industries biggies like WH Smith and B&Q have also followed the lead and have had positive results. In spite of this, many stores are still doling out about 9 billion bags every year. The response is required not just from a few selected giants but the industry on the whole.
Consumers’ response:
The campaign by the Daily Mail has also attracted a positive response from the consumers. Many shoppers now take their own bags to shopping malls. The amount of consumers’ positive response is overwhelming. The campaign has made the public aware about the ill effects the plastic bags have on the aquatic life. The sensitive consumer, as a response has become proactive to save the dying birds and turtles.
Greener Alternatives:
In order to get results proper legislation needs to be put in place. Cues can be taken from countries like China and Ireland where a drastic change in consumption levels was witnessed with the introduction of charges on plastic bags. Besides, many big retailers have been socially responsible by importing cotton and jute bags from Supreme Creations, India. These include Tesco, Sainsbury’s, Boots, Debenhams, the Energy Saving Trust, the CooperativeOxfam and Topshop to name a few. Dr R Sri Ram, founder Supreme Creations, said “The UK lags way behind many other countries in the world on reducing plastic bag usage.”
Via: DailyMail
