It’s a Losing Battle Against Plastic

National Green Tribunal (NGT) may have rapped the Delhi government recently for not implementing the ban on plastic crockery, but the issue of plastic waste is anything but new and is unlikely to get resolved till a long-pending case is decided.

While the Delhi government has not promoted or subsidised alternative jute or cloth bags that could have brought a shift in consumer behaviour, officials say plastic manufacturers' plea against a ban on sale, storage and use of both 'thin' plastic bags and use-and-throw crockery have been pending in NGT itself.

According to a government notification in 2012, "no person, including a shopkeeper, vendor, a wholesaler or a retailer, trader, hawker or a rehriwala shall sell, store and use plastic carry bags for supply of any goods". It also banned manufacture, storage, import, sell or transport of "any kind of plastic carry bags (including polyproplyne, non-woven fabric ones)". But two manufacturers soon moved the Delhi high court and got a stay on the notification. Last year, the high court sent the case to NGT.

While this case is still pending, on December 2, 2016, NGT directed that the use of disposable plastic or plastic crockery be banned from January 1, 2017. But, in February, Plastic Waste Manufacturers and Traders Association, Delhi filed a review petition in NGT. "I don't think the government can implement these bans unless NGT directs either way," said a lawyer representing Delhi Pollution Control Committee before the tribunal.

However, the plastic waste management rules 2016 already prohibit carry bags that are less than 50 microns in thickness. "These are national rules and the government can at least implement them," said Priti Mahesh, senior programme coordinator at Toxics Link. A 2014 study showed that very thin plastic bags were being used in bulk in the market. "The problem is alternatives like jute or cloth or paper bags were not even promoted by the government," she added.

Even the mixed-spun plastic bags being used extensively in shops are not biodegradable, but thin plastic bags are a bigger problem, said Mahesh. "These tend to choke drains and waterbodies or are just dumped with garbage. Even ragpickers don't find value in collecting them. The best alternative is for consumers to carry their own bags." But thin bags are still in circulation as they are dirt cheap, costing about 10 paise each compared to Rs 8-10 for every jute bag.

Although awareness drives are being carried out, fines cannot be levied until the new solid waste management bylaws come into force, said a corporation official.