Come August 17, the use of plastic bags below 40 microns will be completely banned from the market. The Department of Environment (DoEvn), functioning under the Ministry of Forests and Environment, has decided to strictly monitor the status of the ban on the production, import, sale, distribution and use of such types of plastic bags. In order to strictly monitor the ban on the use of plastic bags of this category, the Council of Ministers recently endorsed the Action Plan for Ban of Plastic Bags-2022.

The action plan has empowered the monitoring committees of all the three tiers of government to seize plastic bags from firms, companies or persons who produce, collect, sell or distribute or store plastic bags of less than 40 microns. The DoEvn, in its statement, has said it could not effectively monitor the implementation of the plan during the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic due to restriction on the movement of concerned officials. A notice to this effect had been published in the Nepal Gazette on September 15, 2021. But it largely remained ineffective due to the nationwide lockdown for several months. The use of very thin plastic bags is the main cause of environmental pollution and an eyesore at public places.

In its notice, the DoEvn has warned that anyone defying the ban on plastic bags will be taken legal action as per the Environment Protection Act-2019. If a person or organisation violates the rules, the offender may be punished with a fine of upto Rs 300,000. It has also appealed to the entrepreneurs to shun the production, import, sale, distribution, and use of plastic bags of thickness that is less than 40 microns in line with the decision of the government. Even before the Act was enacted in 2019, the government had decided to impose a ban on the use of thin plastic bags to protect the local environment, water bodies and public places. But it could not be implemented due to its easy availability. However, major department stores in the capital have already stopped distributing plastic bags amid growing environmental concerns.

The use of thin plastic bags can be easily controlled provided the concerned industries are not allowed to produce and sell such types of plastic bags, widely used to carry clothes, vegetables, fruits, milk and meat. As it takes hundreds of years for plastic to decompose, the decision to impose a total ban on the use of plastic bags is a welcome step. Instead of producing cheaper plastic bags, the industries should switch to producing bags made from handmade paper, cloth and jute, all of which are easily biodegradable and do not harm the local environment. Consumers should also be aware of the environment by rejecting plastic bags. Industries producing plastic bags should be offered incentives for some time should they wish to produce bags made of other materials. Switching to an environment-friendly business will not only help generate jobs for tens of thousands of people, but they can also be exported to earn foreign currency. A few firms, for example, have been producing various items by using handmade paper and Himalayan nettle and exporting them in the international market. The government should help them expand their business by offering attractive incentives.

Act in time

It's hard to say when a natural disaster or a calamity will strike a place, but we can always prepare for it to mitigate the impact. But in most cases, we tend to act only after a tragic incident has struck. The deaths of three people on Sunday at Sallaghari of Bhaktapur was largely avoidable had the authorities acted in time. The three were killed on the spot when a tree fell and crushed a passenger bus and a scooter in motion. Another 12 people who were injured are undergoing treatment in various hospitals, some of them in critical condition.

Following the fatal accident, the authorities have chopped down 21 trees that experts had marked as unsafe for the public on the roadside at Sallaghari. In the past, the trees lining the road to Bhaktapur used to be pruned every few years, but we have not seen this happen in recent years. Similar accidents can be avoided if the local government, utility companies and the general public gave some thought to the safety of the public. It is quite common to see electric and internet wires dangling from the poles in the capital or a manhole left uncovered during maintenance. It is always good to be wise before an accident takes place than afterwards.

A version of this article appears in the print on July 28, 2022, of The Himalayan Times.