The effects of climate change, demand actions to stop or counteract our current crisis, and plastic bags are a big issue.
According to a study, each family In Mexico City generates approximately 650 single-use plastic bags per year. Therefore, starting in the month of January supermarkets and convenience stores that get caught selling or distributing plastic bags will be sanctioned with a fine that could go from 42,000 to 170,000 pesos.
However, “the main objective of the ban on single-use bags is to raise public awareness, it is not focused on the sanction, because what we want is for people to become aware of the harm that using these bags provokes,” said the Secretary of Environment of the CDMX, Marina Robles.
In a press conference, she recalled that the “Solid Waste Law” will go into effect in January 1st, 2020; and the regulation will be published, with some exceptions for the use of plastic bags, since certain food products require plastic for hygiene purposes, so this material will still be used in some cases, until there are compostable bags on the market.
However, the official clarified that neither the stores nor other markets will be able to sell plastic bags to citizens to carry their purchases, since compostable bags are already available.
The secretary concluded that there are 2.5 million families in the CDMX, and each one generates 650 single-use bags a year, which means that more than 1 billion plastic bags are thrown away in the capital of the country, which take up to 450 years to degrade.
The Yucatan Times
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