The FINANCIAL — According to the Technical Regulation of the Government of Georgia, plastic bags that are less than 15 microns thick banned beginning October 1, 2018. Selling, importing, and producing plastic bags is now prohibited. Within the same regulation, selling, importing, and producing oxo-degradable plastic bags will also be banned.
“Currently, plastic pollution is one of the world’s most serious environmental problems. To effectively address this problem, every person needs to realize the core of the problem and actively reduce the amount of waste generated in their lives. In addition, it is essential to implement policy change on a global scale, including raising awareness concerning littering and its negative environmental impact, supporting recycling and reducing the production and consumption of plastic. At this point, less must be more”, commented Caucasus Environmental NGO Network in its statement.
The production of plastic mostly began in the middle of the 20th century. According to researchers at leading universities in the United States, plastic production amounted to 2 million tons in 1950, while in 2015 its annual production amounted to 380 million tons.
According to data, half the amount of plastic produced during 1950-2015 has been produced in the past 3 years. Consequently, plastic production has an annually increasing trend and by 2050, around 12 billion tons of plastic is expected to accumulate in landfills and in the environment.
Every year 8 million tons of plastic end up in oceans, killing marine life and negatively impacting marine ecosystems. When disposed in the environment, plastic does not decompose easily or immediately, thereby negatively impacting the environment.
There is no easy fix with the current magnitude of global plastic pollution, but producing and selling biodegradable bags as well as recycling will certainly help.
10 recycling corners have already been established in Tbilisi where people can bring their own paper, glass, plastic and aluminium waste to dispose of.
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