How many people today grab a takeaway coffee cup from the local cafe to drink on the go? We don’t know, but the number must be enormous.. Most every one of the above have a plastic top that will last 100s of years. Some cafes still use plastic cups that last a similar time. Is 10 minutes of coffee worth 100s of years of trash?
These items can be seen littering our gutters and on our streets all over the place. If they were all cardboard, they would still be littered, but they would, at least, be gone in a short time.
They do not need to be made of plastic.
On the way home from the gym last week, a distance of about 1 km (1/2 mile), I counted the items of plastic litter on the curb as I walked. In that short distance I counted 63 pieces of plastic litter. Plastic drink bottles, bottle tops, candy wrappers, plastic film, polystyrene fragments etc. That seemed to be a lot to me. I guess it is a generational thing. Our parents would have been horrified to see that amount, whereas it seems to go unnoticed by our youth of today. In another 20 years how many pieces will there be on this stretch, -- 200? What will today’s youth think of that new amount then when they are older? Will their children be so readily accepting of a higher amount of litter? Small retailers exempt from plastic bag levy | Packaging News | Jobs | Production | Design | Innovation
Posted on June 22, 2014 by DrRossH in Plastic Limiting RegulationsMinisters have opted to exempt small retailers from enforcing the levy, which it says would be unfair and costly to small businesses such as local newsagents and convenience stores.
The Committee had recommended the government not proceed with its plan for a biodegradable plastic bag exemption because of the risk of contamination to plastic recycling and the potential confused messages shoppers would get.
The government concluded that a biodegradable plastic exemption will not be included in the legislation until standards for the bags have been finalised.
“I am pleased, however, that the government has conceded that the proposed exemption for biodegradable plastic bags could cause problems for the UK’s recycling industry and will now not be included when the charge is introduced next year,” added Walley.
The UK govt is correct to not exempt ‘biodegradable’ bags as there are so many confusing claims around biodegradable these days that it would not be possible to verify all the claims. So a simple catch all ban is the best choice.
However to exempt small business is not a good idea. Every one should have the same conditions. All bags should be charged for. This is the only way consumer will get the message that these bags they use are very harmful to the environment.
Discussion · No Comments
There are no responses to "Small retailers exempt from plastic bag levy | Packaging News | Jobs | Production | Design | Innovation". Comments are closed for this post.Oops! Sorry, comments are closed at this time. Please try again later.