Tuesday, January 11, 2011

Why it’s good but why it should be better!

No Plastic Bag Day: Why it’s good but why it should be better!

midweek moan
So in recent headlines, the Domestic Trade, Cooperatives and Consumerism Ministry has made ‘No Plastic Bag Day’ Saturdays applicable throughout the country – instead of just in Penang and Selangor before – and, in an effort to make the campaign more effective, they’ve also implemented a 20 sen charge on shoppers for each new plastic bag used at hypermarkets, supermarkets and Petronas service stations on the day.
It gets a lot stricter in Penang, where the state’s Consumer Watch Group has made every day  ‘No Plastic Bag Day’ (also with the 20 sen charge), which also coincides with Penang’s new ‘No Polystyrene at Local Council Hawker Centres’ ruling, following the state’s efforts last year on educating their public about the new rulings for 2011.

Personally, I have no complaints about the new ruling. In fact, I’ve been all for a no plastic bag ruling for years now, not just for the environment’s sake but also for the fact that tiny plastic bags (the ones not big enough to be re-used as rubbish bags) become a household nuisance if you’ve saved like a million of them in your lifetime, so why not put an end to the clutter by just refusing plastic bags when you don’t need them and instead carry around a bigger handbag for all your mini purchases? That’s what got me into the habit that first time anyway (now it’s gone on to refusing  shoe boxes too).
So it’s great that our government is finally taking some steps towards a greener nation, and I believe decreasing our use of plastic bags is the best move forward (hopefully it will pave the way for more ‘going green’ rulings), but while the move should be lauded, I can’t help but wonder if this ruling will be able to transcend the major participating shopping outlets and be adopted by everyone. I mean, sure, rules can be implemented and regular checks can be made to enforce them, but – with the exception of Penang – what about those stores not obliged to participate? Is anyone going to educate them to be less wasteful with plastic or do we just have to sit and hope that with enough ‘No Plastic Bag Day’ stories reported in the papers they’ll eventually get the message that the country’s trying to reduce plastic bag use and eventually follow suit?
Call me cynical, but judging by how Dataran Merdeka and other major spots with New Year’s Eve celebrations were reported to be heavily littered with loose rubbish discarded by revellers despite the many bins around the venues, I don’t suppose someone’s going to walk into a mamak or mini market and say something like ‘Hey, you shouldn’t use so much plastic, it’s a waste’ any time soon, especially if they’re one to freely litter at an outdoor party knowing that Alam Flora will clean after them. It’s disgusting really, but I digress.
Anyway, what I’m trying to say here is that we’ve been using plastic bags for everything and anything for years now, so much so that it’s been embedded into our minds that we need them. It’s going to be hard to change it overnight, or even in a year for that matter, so here’s my suggestion: be like Penang and make ‘No Plastic Bag Day’ every day throughout the country, and make it compulsory for all supermarkets/hypermarkets and stores to follow, with mini markets and standalone stores given a grace period to adjust. Maybe even increase the 20 sen charge to a RM1 charge, to really make shoppers feel the pinch every time they forget to bring a shopping bag.
It’s a drastic measure, but maybe it’s the only way for now to really make the campaign serve its objectives, and get Malaysians to buck up? That’s what I think anyway.
In the meantime, here’s to hoping that 2011 will also see a ruling on recycling too! I’ll be keeping an eye out for that. And hopefully, with the simultaneous ‘No Plastic Bag Day’ nationwide ruling, I’ll get less weird/dumbfounded looks every time I tell a cashier to pack my items into my shopping bag.
What’s your take on the ‘No Plastic Bag Day’ campaign and how do you think we can educate Malaysians to be less wasteful? It’d be great to know what everyone thinks.

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