While China has never been really popular for its ecological decisions, this country is now clearly tackling single-use plastics. So China is giving itself five years to completely ban this type of plastic!
China realizes
In 2017, China declared that it no longer wanted to be the trash can of the world. In other words, it was a question of partially stopping imports from certain countries. Since 2018, many types of waste can no longer be exported to China. This is surely the starting point of a real turn started by this country in terms of anti-plastic policy.
However, not everything is so easy, so much so that in 2019 China made an alarming observation. Indeed, the generalization of home meal deliveries has caused a mass accumulation of waste. It is estimated that around 14 million tonnes of waste were generated last year from home food deliveries alone! In addition, the country’s recycling infrastructure was absolutely not ready for such volumes, the latter having multiplied by 9 since 2017! This mishap undoubtedly contributed to seal the fate of plastic in China. According to the BBC in an article of January 20, 2020, the country has just taken drastic measures!
What do these measures imply?
The Chinese government has said it wants to ban single-use plastic bags from all major cities in the country. In 2022, the measure will extend to the whole territory. However, fresh produce markets will have until 2025 to end these plastic bags. It should also be noted that the production of bags with a thickness of less than 0.025 mm will be prohibited. In restaurants, establishments will have to ban plastic straws by the end of 2020. As for hotels, the latter will have until 2025 to remove all disposable items. In the meantime, this sector will be subject to a 30% reduction in these items.
You should know that China was already planning to take anti-plastic measures. However, it finds itself having to decide urgently because of the recent waste crisis. An example illustrates this emergency perfectly, namely the largest landfill in the country: Jiangcungou, located in Shaanxi province. The latter measures the equivalent of a hundred football fields and is already filled with 25 years in advance!
