The number of plastic bags consumed in Vietnam is expected to
decrease by 65 percent by 2020, compared to the previous decade.
This is one of the targets of a project to control pollution caused by
non-biodegradable plastics bags, which was recently approved by Prime
Minister Nguyen Tan Dung.
Under the project, by 2015,
the number of consumed plastic bags will drop by 20 percent in regular
markets and by 40 percent in supermarkets and commercial centres.
The PM has asked the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment
(MoNRE) to ban the production of plastic bags thinner than 30
micrometres in order to make them easier to collect and recycle.
The MoNRE is also required to gather and recycle at least 25 percent of the waste from these plastic bags.
Relevant ministries, departments, and municipal and provincial
authorities need to work out ways to classify waste and are encouraged
to use recycled products made from plastic bags, especially in building
public facilities.
Communication campaigns will be
intensified to raise public awareness of the harmful impacts of plastic
bags on the environment.
The public will be encouraged to use bags made from environmentally friendly materials more widely.-VNA