For the use of plastic bags the Scots will have to pay an additional fee
Last reviewed: 16.10.2021
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In the middle of the last century, a variety of rope, rag, etc. Was replaced. Bags came plastic bags. The plastic bags that appeared in the United States of America in 1957 quickly gained popularity around the world.
Currently, the plastic bag is the most popular household item, without which there is not a single shop.
However, convenient and practical plastic bags as a source of inexhaustible garbage present a threat to all life on earth. The decomposition period of the plastic bag is about one hundred years, as a result, irreparable harm to the environment is caused.
Many countries understand the danger of the situation and are already taking practical measures to solve this problem. For example, some 40 countries have already passed laws that prohibit the use of plastic bags. Some countries have specially introduced high prices for such packages. In Scotland, local authorities from October 2014 will introduce a special fee, which will be levied on each plastic bag. In the parliament, the law was passed almost unanimously, and from October the Scots will have to pay 5 pence for each sachet. All funds received from plastic packages will go to charity. The Secretary of the Environment in Scotland Richard Lockhead noted the importance for the nature of the voting held in the country's parliament. He also stressed that all the money received will be used exclusively for good deeds, in particular, for the implementation of other environmental projects. The secretary also said that the payment for using plastic bags received in this way should not be considered a tax. Such a decision of the parliament shows how serious Scotland relates to acute problems of environmental pollution, garbage and waste reduction.
Such measures are necessary in order to reduce the amount of plastic debris in the country (now in stores such packages are given completely free of charge). Every year in the shops of Scotland, 750 million one-off packages are issued. Similar laws already exist in Wales (in 2010) and in Northern Ireland (in 2013), which led to a sharp decline in the use of plastic bags for carrying purchases. After the new law comes into force in Scotland, England will be the only part of the UK where plastic bags will remain freely available to consumers, but not for long. Local authorities in England announced that in 2015 they are also planning to introduce a law on the introduction of a similar fee for the use of plastic packaging for purchases.
In addition, the European Union also plans to impose restrictions on the free use of plastic bags. The legislature is considering various options for restrictive measures that all states that are members of the European Union can approach. Among the proposed options are direct bans on the sale of plastic bags, various incentives for the use of paper and other eco-friendly packaging, targeted fees.
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