Time for Singapore to crack down on single-use plastic bags

ON the morning of New Year's Day, Thailand - the second largest economy in South-east Asia - implemented a ban on single-use plastic bags being given out at major department stores, hypermarkets and convenience stores across the country where individuals use an average of eight plastic bags every day.

It is part of a nationwide effort to reduce garbage and help fight global warming, with the plan for a complete ban - including at wet markets and smaller grocery stores - in 2021. Predictably, many Thai shoppers were up in arms about the blanket ban, with some arguing that the government should have rolled it out gradually to allow people to get used to bringing their own bags. But in the two weeks since, there have been reports of how more people have started bringing their own bags or reusable containers. Those who did not can buy reusable bags from the cashier. Thailand's ban on single-use plastic bags is not a perfect one, by any stretch of the imagination. For instance, there have been complaints about how the policy has allowed retailers to eliminate the cost of providing plastic bags from their operating budget, and instead pass the burden to customers to either bring their own bag or buy what is available at the counter.

Many other countries have tried different ways to ban plastic bags from being given out. In Malaysia, Penang was the first state to launch a "no free plastic bag" campaign at supermarkets in 2011. The Selangor government also rolled out a similar policy in 2017, after implementing a "no plastic bag day" every Saturday since 2010. In Bangladesh, the High Court on Jan 6 ordered the government to ban single-use plastic bags in coastal areas, as well as hotels and restaurants, by 2021.