Plans to Ban Plastic Bags for 2010

The Municipal Group of Los Verdes (the Green Party) of Orihuela has filed a motion to be debated at the next Town Council meeting, referring to the alarming and continuous use of plastic bags, without taking into account the indications that come from almost all administrations divulging information on measures to combat climate change. This Council can not and must not turn it's back on the serious environmental issues.

The Environment Ministry plans to ban the plastic bag for 2010. Reducing the use of these bags has become a global concern. As a significant figure in China, consumption of plastic bags has reached 3,000 million units per day. In Spain, 10,500 million bags are distributed a year, which means that each inhabitant uses an annual average of 238 units.

Likewise, the Environment Ministry has announced to the plastic industry, supermarkets and various environmental organizations that within the National Plan for Waste it aims to halve the consumption of plastic bags by the year 2009, and prohibit single-use non-biodegradable plastic bags by 2010. This plan reflects the replacement of 70% of plastic bags by other paper before 2015.

On June 23, 2006, manufacturers and traders were committed, in the headquarters of the Ministry of Environment, to adapt the number of bags given to customers to the products purchased, to issue reusable bags and establish awareness campaigns to make a rational use of them. Some supermarkets and shops have begun to introduce some alternatives to plastic bags for the more conscientious customers, such as charging for them, to offer reusable bags, or introduce the biodegradable bag.

Faced with this situation, some municipalities have already started specific actions to make a gradual replacement of the use of plastic for other alternatives, handing out cloth bags for the daily shopping and introduce the biodegradable paper bag.

For this reason, the Municipal Group of Los Verdes ask that our Municipal Council, establish together with the local commerce, a campaign aimed at consumers, which has as its ultimate goal to limit the use of plastic bags, to move gradually towards the National Plan for Waste

Similarly, it is proposed from Los Verdes that, through the Local Chamber of Commerce, the possibility and economic feasibility of making a campaign distributing reusable bags in each and every local businesses that minimize the use of the traditional plastic bags and coupled with boosting local commerce.

Lastly, that this administration claims from the Central Spanish Government and from the Provincial Government of Valencia, financial help that is availbale, to promote the use of alternatives to plastic bags.