Youth leads route to plastic bag ban in Bahamas
Plastic pollution is killing sea creatures and marine life and is polluting our own food. Our mission is to protect marine life and keep plastics out of the Oceans.
A recent research study in that area has found plastics in the stomachs and bodies of 9 out of 10 sea creatures. Another study over four years of 125,000 corals in 150 reefs in Asia-Pacific revealed that the coral that was in contact with plastic debris had an 89 percent chance of having three diseases.
When we learned that the environment department of the Bahamas is working on a ban of those silent killers for 2018, we were extremely happy! It's time that those adorable pigs can swim in clean water :)
Even better about the news, it is the youth who came up with the proposal. The notion to reduce the use of plastic bags started with a delegation named the Bahamas Plastic Movement. The group of students from 10 to 16 years took a serious look at the issue of disposable plastic bags. They gathered data on the use and impact of single-use plastic bags, and drafted a proposal to regulate the use of plastic bags. The proposal the students put together called for a tax on disposable plastic bags. The intention was to still allow bags but reduce their use.
They submitted their proposal to the Minister of Environment and he decided to implement an even far more reaching solution. A complete plastic bag ban will go into effect later this year. In addition, other disposable plastic items, including products made from polystyrene, will also be banned.
The Bahamas are not the first country in the Caribbean to ban plastic bags. Early in 2017, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Guyana and Antigua and Barbuda all put their own versions of plastic bag bans in place.
The movement is spreading. Check out this cool world map to see where plastic bag bans are already in place.
Sources:
- http://www.bahamasplasticmovement.org