Around this time last year, the then Minister for Environment Sunil Kumar Manandhar declared the government was going to ban the use of plastic bags in the country. Earlier this year, Kathmandu Metropolitan City decided to enforce a complete ban on plastic bags less than 20 microns thick.[break]
Department stores in the past have tried to wean shoppers from plastic bags. Namaste Supermarket in Pulchowk started a ‘No Plastic Bag’ campaign. Bhatbhateni Supermarket provided cotton bags at minimal cost. Charge was levied on plastic carrier bags. Customers were lured with free gift vouchers into bringing their own bags.
“The campaign didn’t last long, as customers expressed dissatisfaction over being charged for polythene bags,” says Sachina Chitrakar, cashier at Namaste Supermarket. Lack of awareness among people and the need of a convenient at-hand option to ferry groceries make plastic bags hard to get rid of.
While on one hand, the government struggles to do away with the ubiquitous thin black polythene bags altogether, the authorities concerned maintain that plastic is one of the modern conveniences that people can’t do without, and a plan to impose a ban on it wholly is doomed to failure from the word go.
The governments’ initiative is solely to ban black plastic bags less than 20 microns thick that are considered extremely harmful to the environment, but there have also been numerous attempts to do away with plastic bags altogether.
But the government, FNCCI (Federation of Nepalese Chambers of Commerce and Industry) and Nepal Plastic Manufacturers Association are clueless about how much plastic is manufactured yearly in the nation.
Non-biodegradable plastics pose a direct threat to the environment. One perfect example of the destructive nature of plastic could be the declining number of fish in the Bagmati River. What earlier used to be a hotspot for fishing and thus a good source of livelihood and income for many has now become more or less a plastic dumping site and that has greatly affected the aquatic life.
“The number of fish in Bagmati has declined also because of plastic litter. Besides that, plastic can clog drainage pipes and if it’s burnt, the smoldering smoke is highly toxic,” says Silsila Acharya, Program Officer at Himalayan Climate Initiative, adding that they have come up with a plan to lessen the use of these harmful items under their project “Hamro Bahini – The Green Angels.” The first phase of the project is an anti-plastic campaign and will focus on making cloth and jute bags to replace plastic ones.
Illustration: Sworup Nhasiju
Every once in a while in the past few years the capital has witnessed an order banning shopkeepers from providing plastic bags to customers. But the lack of availability of substitutes for plastic bags has made it difficult for the supposed ban to have a lasting effect. Maybe Himalayan Climate Initiative’s effort will, to some extent, help lessen the quantity of plastic consumed on a daily basis.
The Ministry of Environment has come up with Plastic Bags Control and Regulation Directive 2011 and holds the right to fine those manufacturing and using bags less than 20 microns. Hari Acharya, Under Secretary at the Ministry of Environment, Science and Technology says that though they have been monitoring the production and use of black plastic bags, there has been a dilution in the efficacy of the ban due to lack of proper enforcement, ineffectiveness of policy and sometimes even blatant violation of rules.
Also with approximately 500 plastic industries nationwide, 200 of which are located in the capital, monitoring becomes a difficult task. But if better management were to be carried out, the issue of plastic-related environmental problems could be reduced to a large extent for it is the misuse and improper disposal that harms the environment, says Pradeep Jung Pandey, Vice Chairman of FNCCI.
“Many plastic industries are running without registration and so we don’t know how much plastic is being produced and hence can’t curb it,” says Pandey. If he is to be believed, then it is the lack of policy that is the root cause of all our plastic-related woes.
Rabin Man Shrestha, chief at KMC Environment Division, says that banning plastic bags is not the solution though KMC has launched an awareness program and is in the process of educating the public and shopkeepers alike about the harmful effects of polythene bags.
“Plastic bags are an easy solution to dispose of garbage and carry groceries. And they are easily available,” he says, adding that this convenience is what makes it immensely tough to get rid of. “We can’t just impose a ban touting environmental reasons and cause people inconvenience without offering them a viable solution.”
Jute products are good replacement options for plastics, and nominal taxation on jute industries is one way the government seems to be encouraging it. To what extent will jute products replace plastic is yet to be seen but some efforts from the government do seem like a promising start.
There have also been initiatives from both the government and private sector to minimize the use of plastic. Plastic is banned in the premises of Singha Durbar, KMC and the Central Zoo. Some private companies too have banned the use of plastic in its offices and the employees of these organizations campaign for the cause.
“Our employees contribute 2% of their salary to our anti-plastic campaign. We use the funds to make environment friendly bags besides making posters to raise awareness about using less plastic bags as possible,” says Sundar Karki, Manager at Explore Nepal Pvt. Ltd, an ecotourism organization.
Some denizens of the Valley also seem to be concerned about the impact of plastic pollution and are seen making efforts to curb its use. Sudha Tuladhar, a housewife, tries to do without plastic as far as possible. “I don’t accept plastic bags unless I’m buying meat. I just put whatever else I buy in this bag, including groceries,” she says, pulling out a battered jute bag as proof.
While there was an outcry from the plastic industries regarding a full-fledged ban, the public too seems to be divided on the issue. While some like Tuladhar think it’s a good initiative, many on the other hand feel that a ban is senseless and the government should focus on the recycling aspect rather than trying to implement a ludicrous idea.
Without a strong policy, what remains to be seen is how long it will take for the Valley to be a relatively plastic-free zone. The effort to shoulder some responsibility and the willingness to create change for a sustainable future on both the public and the government’s part is commendable but it needs to be more widespread.
The government needs to come up with a sustainable workable policy and the public has to support the activism. Only then can a notable impact be made, else it will always remain an issue that will keep cropping up and fading out.
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