China's plastic bag ban goes into effect June 1
mongabay.com
May 29, 2008
Few Chinese businesses appear to be prepared for the June 1st ban on the manufacture and free distribution of thin plastic bags, reports Scientific American.
The law, which aims to cut down on "white pollution" and save as much as 37 million barrels of oil currently used to produce the bags, will require shopkeepers to charge for the distribution of bags thinner than 0.025 millimeters thick.
In interviews with Chinese businesses, Scientific American found few shop owners knew how to respond to the ban. The government has suggested they sell re-usable plastic and canvas bags.
In response to the ban, China's largest producer of such thin plastic bags, Huaqiang, has already shut down its operations.
China's ban on plastic bags follows similar restrictions in Ireland, Taiwan, and some U.S. and European cities.
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