Lawmakers pass sweeping ban that will have major impact on customers' shopping habits: 'To save the country'
According to The Zimbabwe Mail, Ethiopia's House of Peoples' Representatives, which is the lower of the country's two parliamentary houses, approved the proclamation banning all single-use plastic bags in the country and prohibiting retailers from selling them.
The proclamation imposes a fine of 2,000 to 5,000 birr ($14.57 to $36 USD) on individuals found in possession of bags and even stricter penalties on businesses and manufacturers found selling the bags. Businesses found selling bags will be hit with fines between 50,000 and 200,000 birr (between $364 and $1,457 USD) or a jail sentence of up to five years.
The bill faced opposition in the legislature. Several members expressed concern that the fines would place undue pressure on lower-income citizens since they would be more inclined to use the single-use bags to begin with.
However, Awoke Amzaye, the Deputy Chairperson of the Standing Committee for Water, Irrigation, Lowland Areas, and Environmental Development Affairs, said the fines were a small price to pay to reduce the impact of plastic pollution on the country.
"From this perspective, even if the fine were 20,000 or 30,000 birr, it would be to save the country," he said, per The Zimbabwe Mail.
Plastic pollution is a massive global problem, but it can be especially troublesome in areas with less robust waste-management systems, like Ethiopia.
Single-use plastic containers and bags end up being a constant presence in the environment, especially in oceans and waterways, and can create big problems.
This is because the plastic used to make the bags doesn't break down, but it does break apart into tiny particles known as microplastics. These have been linked to profoundly negative health issues in humans and have been found in the bloodstream, inside the brain, and in the lungs as well. The plastic can also leach toxic chemicals into the soil and water, especially when exposed to prolonged high temperatures.
Ethiopia has begun a national public awareness campaign to educate citizens about the ban and its implications and explain the environmental rationale behind it.
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