Viet Nam Human Rights
Vietnam to ban plastic bags from markets by 2030
14/5/22
Vietnam will ban the use of all plastic bags, even in wet markets, from 2030, according to an official of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment.
Deputy head of the Ministry’s Institute of Strategy and Policy on National Resources and Environment (ISPONRE) Nguyen Trung Thang said that currently, manufacturers are considering changes to technology to meet market demand and comply with State regulations.
Thang said over the past time, Vietnam has seen many positive signals in promoting the restriction of plastic bags.
He took the establishment of the Plastic Alliance's pilot project as an example.
The Plastic Alliance gathers 16 retailers that pledge to reduce the use of disposable plastic bags. It is part of the “Rethinking Plastics - Circular Economy Solutions to Marine Litter in Vietnam” project funded by the European Union (EU) and the German Government, and carried out by Expertise France.
The alliance has stepped up communication programs directed at retailers and on social media platforms to change consumer behavior and reduce single-use plastic bags and plastic products.
According to an ISPONRE survey, up to 104,000 single-use plastic bags are used at supermarkets each day, equivalent to 38 million bags a year. Among the 48 supermarkets surveyed, 46 are providing plastic bags free of charge.
Therefore, Vietnam has set a target of using 100 percent environmentally-friendly bags at commercial centers and supermarkets by 2025.
To that end, many policies have been approved by the Vietnamese Government to limit plastic bags and single-use plastic products, including the National Strategy on Integrated Management of Solid Waste to 2025, with a vision to 2050.
The 2020 Law on Environmental Protection also stipulates the responsibility of manufacturers for waste recycling and treatment, and includes regulations on the reduction, recycling and treatment of plastic waste as well as prevention and control of ocean plastic waste.
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All comments [ 20 ]
There has been a growing trend of restrictions and bans on plastic bag use worldwide.
They should indeed decrease the number of plastic bags that end up in landfills, clog sewer systems, spoil our landscapes, degrade into secondary microplastic pollution and kill wildlife.
Plastic waste is indeed a very serious problem.
While plastic bags are visible to us all, we need to remember that what is in them is often more harmful to the environment than the bags themselves.
Evidence from previous plastic bag restrictions shows this does reduce their use, but sometimes leads to more environmental harm if customers switch to other materials with larger resource footprints.
Paper bags can require 400% more energy to make, not to mention the harvesting of trees and use of noxious chemicals in production.
Plastic bags use fossil fuels, a nonrenewable resource, and are permanent, entering the waste stream forever.
They may cause more pollution on land and in waterways, but have less effect on climate change and land use than other types of bags.
a decision on the type of bag becomes about which particular environmental issue takes priority.
Biodegradable bags, perhaps surprisingly, could be “the worst option” in terms of their impact on climate, harm to soil, water pollution and toxic emissions.
Researchers in psychology have observed people often harm the environment when they try to save the planet.
This is related to the concept of compensatory behaviour.
Reducing plastic bag use might grant people mental licence to take other actions that are more detrimental to the environment.
The greatest gain from plastic bag bans and pricing is probably in shifting environmental outlooks.
There can be broader shifts in norms, as “the emergence around the world of an anti-plastic bag norm has been rapid and widespread”.
The hope is that increased consciousness in this part of our lives will raise awareness about environmental impacts and alter behaviour in other ways.
When it comes to a plastic bag, if you want to want to halve the environmental harm, use it twice.
If we do get reusable bags, we really need to re-use, re-use and re-use them.
Regardless of the material, the best bags are the ones you already own.
In the end, should plastic bag bans be banned? Not exactly, but the entire story of their effects must be more closely considered.
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