Plastic Bags
Voluntary Measures on Plastic Bags
On 23 December 2003 the Environment Protection and Heritage Council (EPHC) agreed to a package of measures to reduce environmental impacts of plastic bags. The communiqué outlined key areas of agreement between the ministers who articulated a goal of cutting plastic bags litter by 75% by the end of 2004. The four key short term actions the Minister's agreed to were:
- Govt to develop legislative options (eg Levy)
- Retailer code of practice with targets of 50% recycling rate for HDPE bags and 50% reduction in number of HDPE plastic bags used.
- Education campaign
- Study into degradable bags
Total Phaseout
Actions 2 - 4 were carried out, while the time for delivering on the first action is rapidly approaching. The EPHC commited itself to the phase-out of plastic bags by 2008. The voluntary reductions which have been achieved across Australia will soon need to be backed by a scheme for eliminating the bags altogether. At their April 2005 meeting, Ministers indicated that they expect to see a draft agreement for phase-out of plastic bags within 3 months. They directed Standing Committee to prepare for Council consideration an assessment of options (including regulation) to bring about the phase out of lightweight plastic bags by the end of 2008, should current arrangements fail.
Litter Management
The December 2003 communiqué also referred to a number of ancillary actions that the EPHC members would pursue. One of these ancillary actions was to develop plastic bag litter abatement activities. The EPHC released Draft Guidelines for the management of plastic bag litter in public places and at landfills (view Draft Guidelines). In response to the invitation to comment on the Draft Guidelines, the Municipal Waste Advisory Council (MWAC) has developed a submission to the EPHC (view MWAC Submission). In addition to remarks about the content of the Draft Guidelines, the Submission discusses the appropriateness of the EPHC’s approach to managing the issues associated with plastic bags.
Other Resources
For more information on issues surrounding plastic bags, the Victorian Litter Action Alliance (VLAA) website provides some useful materials (view VLAA website).