Surcharge for single-use carrier bags? Better to tackle commercial use of disposables in S'pore, says Khor.

Even biodegradable & paper bags have a negative impact on the environment.

Zhangxin Zheng | October 04, 2018, 10:35 AM

Should the government levy charges for all single-use carrier bags to discourage the wastage of plastics in Singapore?

Member of Parliament Louis Ng raised an adjournment motion in Parliament to urge Singapore to address the plastic waste problem — which, he argues, is more than just an environmental issue but also "a danger to the health of our ecosystems and to our own health".

Charging all single-use carrier bags, with exceptions

Speaking from his personal experience, Ng highlighted that the throwaway culture is so ingrained that charging for single-use carrier bags becomes necessary to reduce the waste generation. This surcharge applies to single-use carrier bags made of materials they are made of. 

"Even when I bring my own reusable bag to the supermarket, the cashier sometimes puts my groceries first into a plastic bag, and then into my reusable bag. We really need to start thinking about our plastic bag use."

However, he says, exemptions can be made to the purchase of fresh produce, raw meat or seafood which may be unhygienic so plastic bags should be given out for these items.

Recognising the fact that Singaporeans are accustomed to bagging their garbage using plastic bags before disposal, Ng said that people can reuse these bags to "bin their trash, maintaining the cleanliness and safety of our rubbish chutes and waste disposal system".

Senior Minister of State for Environment and Water Resources Amy Khor, responded in Parliament that the government will continue to monitor developments with regard to Ng's suggestion.

"We will not hesitate to legislate where necessary. But we will do so by taking a pragmatic and considered approach that suits our local context. While we always seek to learn from others, it is never our practice in policy making to simply follow what other countries have done."

No better substitution to plastic bags

Previously in March, Khor responded to suggestions of implementing a surcharge for single-use plastic bags and agreed that "a more sustainable approach is to tackle the excessive consumption of all types of disposables" in Singapore. 

A life-cycle assessment (LCA) study on carrier bags and food packaging commissioned by NEA also revealed that single-use carrier bags regardless of materials, including bio-degradable bags and paper bags, all exert some kind of negative impact on the environment.

Khor reiterated the fact that there is no better substitution to single-use plastic bags, which are the most common form of single-use carrier bags used, and the only way is to reduce excessive consumption of all types of packaging. 

"Substituting them with other materials may not be more environmentally friendly as some may perceive. Hence, our approach is to reduce excessive consumption of all types of packaging, including plastics used by businesses and individuals...

Hence, our aim is to build a national consciousness to care for the environment so that Singaporeans and businesses will take action, even beyond what the regulations require.

This process may take longer. But this is the right way; the positive effects will go beyond plastic bags, beyond packaging, beyond waste management to areas including climate action."

Efforts focused on reducing packaging waste upstream

While the Ministry of Environment and Water Resources (MEWR) did not adopt Ng's proposal to implement charges on all single-use carrier bags, Khor highlighted the government's efforts in greater enforcement and regulations to tackle packaging waste on a larger scale.

By 2021, MEWR will mandate that businesses report on the type and amount of packaging they put on the market and their plans for reduction. This will focus management’s attention on the amount of packaging used, and raise awareness of the potential to reduce packaging.

The ministry is also studying the feasibility of adopting the Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) approach for packaging waste. This will impose collection targets on businesses who use or produce packaging.

More details of various initiatives to address packaging waste, and other measures for e-waste, food waste and so forth will be available in the ministry's inaugural Zero Waste Masterplan that it will be launching next year, Khor added.

Government can "walk the talk and lead by example"

Besides the proposal of carrier bag charges, Ng also argued that ministries and agencies should take the lead to avoid using disposables from their catering and events.

He cited next year's National Day Parade (NDP) as a particularly good opportunity to use reusable items and minimise packaging. 

"This year’s NDP fun pack contained many plastic items individually wrapped in plastic, and even an NDP 2018 plastic bag for each person to bag their waste.

If NDP 2019 were to use only reusable items with minimal packaging, it would send a strong signal that our nation is committed to building a sustainable world for all Singaporeans."

In response, Khor concurred that the public sectors should lead by example, noting that MEWR has given them all a Best Practice Guide when organising events.

In particular, she says MEWR "is definitely taking the lead" by, for instance, not serving bottled water for meetings, as well as getting their staff to bring their own plates and cutlery for events to avoid the use of disposables.

She encouraged other agencies to follow suit. Turning to the NDP, though, she mentioned that there are limitations in going zero-waste, chiefly because of the large number of attendees.

"We are encouraging other public sector agencies to do the same for their meetings and events such as the National Day Parade and community activities to minimise the use of plastics."

Top photo from screenshot of Parliament videos