OPINION: Plastic bags ban- Small pain for mega gain

Let’s break down why a plastic bag ban is essential. Firstly, the ecological cost of plastic bags is staggering. Most of the plastic bags that are disposed of end up in the ocean not only polluting the water but also turning into a meal for marine creatures, a meal that kills them. Apart from ingestion, plastic bags also choke animals which leads to their death. Secondly, plastic bags are manufactured using greenhouse gases, which are the biggest cause of climate change. Greenhouse gases trap heat in the atmosphere that is supposed to leave the Earth which causes the warming we are going through currently. Thirdly, plastic bags are made using a variety of chemicals that eventually leak out into the soil and water around us. This is damaging not only to the animals we share our world with, but also to ourselves. Finally, these plastic bags take anywhere between 500 and 1,000 years to biodegrade. This means that, for the next 40 to 50 generations, our descendants will be seeing the same plastic bags that we are using today!

However, initially, the government failed to consider what alternatives to plastic bags would be used by the public. Also, the economy took a hit with some claims stating that over 60,000 jobs were lost in Kenya’s plastics industry. Today, things are looking better for the nation’s environment. “Our streets are generally cleaner, which has brought with it a general ‘feel-good’ factor,” said David Ong’are, the enforcement director of the National Environment Management Authority in Kenya. “You no longer see carrier bags flying around when its windy. Waterways are less obstructed. Fishermen on the coast and Lake Victoria are seeing plastic bags entangled in their nets.” He also mentions that three out of ten animals taken to slaughter would have plastics in their guts, but now the number is down to 1-in-10. However, the Kenyan government believes that this ban is only a start, and that more regulations are needed to truly make a lasting difference.

Back in Tanzania, the government is preparing for the upcoming ban by allocating dumping areas for trashed plastic bags, and by providing alternates to single-use plastic bags. National Environmental Management Council Director General Samuel Gwamaka said “at the moment, we have 25 local industries producing paper bags, and other industries producing other types of alternative bags. Production of such bags is expected to increase in the very near future.” So, whilst there will be a teething period when we all have to get used to the new reality we live in, and there will be struggles along the way, things will soon look positive. With appropriate alternatives in place, and more to be produced, we will slowly but surely join the wave of green-positive movements across the world. As long as there is a good amount of planning and engagement which come along with these bans and laws, then I can only see positives coming out of the situation.

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OPINION: Plastic bags ban- Small pain for mega gain

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