New laws about importing and retailing plastic bags
By Nika Gamtsemlidze
Monday, April 15
According to the decision made by Georgian Parliament, importing and retailing plastic bags thicker than 15 Microns has been prohibited since October 1st, 2018. As stated by the law, from April 1st of 2019 using any plastic bags is banned, and importing, retailing or distribution will result in a fine of 500 GEL.
The Deputy Minister of the Environmental Protection and Natural Resources Committee, Nino Tandilashvili talked about the regulations at the hearing in the Parliament.
During the hearing, representatives of plastic producing companies requested a change in the date of the adoption of the law. As Nino Tandilashvili said, for now, there are no significant changes planned.
People attending the hearing met with the Deputy Minister's statement with mixed reactions. As they said, the Georgian Government might not be ready for executing this. They also said that it might cause some problems for local businesses, which has hundreds of people employed in the field.
After the heated discussion, the parties agreed that the topic requires additional work. People with different backgrounds have to come together to find one solution, that will offer the best outcome. As they said, the decision should be reasonable, so the local business will not be affected.
In the end, Nino Tandilashvili cut her speech short, and Gia Gachechiladze, the chairman of the faction "Greens," left the hearing of the Committee in protest, as MP Davit Chichinadze did not allow the deputy minister to present the report at the meeting.
As of today, only biodegradable bags are allowed around Georgia. Environment-friendly bags decompose by bacteria or other living organisms.
While some people keep worrying about their corporations, the situation is becoming worse daily. This problem all over the world is getting out of control as hundreds of animals are dying because of plastic pollution.
Thinking that they are eating food, marine animals digest vast amounts of plastic every day, which results in their death. One of the most shocking facts is that there is 270,000 tons of plastic floating around the world’s Ocean; plastics play a massive role in the rising number of species going extinct.
Around the world, the regulations on production and usage of plastic are getting stricter, but we still have a long way to go. Best way to help the environment is to inform the society about the dangers that using plastic entails could lead us to. Animals are not the only target as studies show; plastics have harmful effects on humans, proving to be carcinogenic or promoting endocrine disruption.
