Plastic bags a big drop in the ocean

October 24, 2016

Plastic bags a big drop in the ocean

Plastic debris on the coast of a Hawaiian island. Photo: Supplied

Every year 1.6 billion single-use plastic bags are discarded in New Zealand alone, according to the Public Place Recycling Scheme. That’s more than 350 per person a year. Most are thrown out mere minutes after leaving the shop.

But moves to reduce their use have so far proved fruitless, despite a petition to ban the bags - which got more than 16,000 signatures - being presented to Green MP Denise Roche last year.

A report from Parliament's local government and environment committee concluded that since plastic bags only make up one per cent of the total waste, a ban wouldn’t be cost-effective. The committee suggested focusing on recycling programmes and consumer education instead.

Many bags end up in the ocean, where they most likely never completely decompose, but end up as microplastic: tiny particles floating around, to be consumed by marine life - and potentially ending up in your food.

It's a problem that stretches across the globe. Right now, the Great Pacific Garbage Patch, mainly consisting of plastic, is estimated to cover an area of 3.5 million sq km, an area larger than India. The estimate is based on recent, high-tech radar aerial measures, made up by the Ocean Clean up project.

In Auckland, projections show the amount of waste sent to landfills will double within the next 10 years. But attempts are being made to combat that. As part of the Love NZ public place recycling scheme, launched in September last year, plastic recycling bins have been put up in participating stores including New World, Pak'nSave, Countdown, and The Warehouse. Latest reports show that more than 14.5 million plastic bags have been recycled, which sounds like a lot - but is still less than one per cent of the bags used.

What are the alternatives?

The logical solution seems to lie in heavily decreasing the amount of bags issued in the first place.

One way would be to make the use of plastic bags a conscious choice., Instead of giving one by default, customers could be asked if they really needed one.

This practice has decreased the use of plastic bags handed out at Foodstuffs supermarkets, which encompasses Pak’nSave, New World and Four Square, by 19 per cent. Another method is to put a levy on disposable bags. Even a tiny amount can have a huge impact.

Overseas experience shows this method is highly effective. In July, the Guardian reported an 85 per cent drop in use of single-use bags, just six months after a 5p (9 cents) charge was introduced. Similar results can be seen throughout Great Britain, with a 71 per cent drop in Wales, 80 per cent in Scotland and 90 per cent in Ireland.

In Germany, the first supermarket to have no packaging at all was introduced in 2014. Consumers bring their own containers and shopping bags. Not only does this eliminate the need for single-use bags, it also drastically reduces the amount of waste in total, since there is no excess packaging, and consumers have the option to buy the exact amount they need, instead of pre-packaged products.

Read the full report on the Parliamentary homepage.

  • Update: In October, the Green Party launched the Waste Minimisation (Single-use Plastic Bag) Amendment Bill. The bill calls for a 15 cent charge on single-use plastic bags at check-outs, with proceeds raised going towards support for non-profit organisations doing waste minimisation projects or education.
Related Stories

Beach weather could undermine ‘stay at home’ message

Beach weather could undermine ‘stay at home’ message

Toby Allen August 26, 2020

Upcoming climate strike to focus on Auckland sea level rise

Upcoming climate strike to focus on Auckland sea level rise

Rachel Sadler September 3, 2019

Council hoardings given second life

Council hoardings given second life

Rachel Sadler August 22, 2019

Call for Gaza ceasefire boosted by Auckland's International Women's Day

Call for Gaza ceasefire boosted by Auckland's International Women's Day

Grace Symmans March 28, 2024

Rugby numbers continue to kick on

Rugby numbers continue to kick on

Matt Bullock March 26, 2024

Circus skills unite communities in East Auckland

Circus skills unite communities in East Auckland

Fravash Irani March 26, 2024