Resource minister Lord de Mauley has said that he expects the packaging industry to rise to the challenge to ensure that an exemption from the governments levy on single use bags for biodegradable carriers does not affect the recycling of plastic films.
Speaking to letsrecycle.com at the Conservative Party Conference in Manchester yesterday (September 30) the minister said that he was aware of concerns raised by members of the recycling sector that an exemption from the levy for biodegradable bags could undermine film recycling.
The minister’s comments came after Environment Secretary Owen Paterson had described the bag charge as a means of ending the blight that plastic bags cause to the marine and land environment adding that an incentive for biodegradable bags will help reduce their impact on the environment in his speech to the conference earlier in the day.
Opponents of the measure, which was announced by Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg last month (see letsrecycle.com story), say that it is not possible to recycle degradable bags alongside standard plastic carriers due to the difference in the structure of the material and that the materials would be difficult to sort if significant numbers of degradable bags enter the waste stream.
Others have argued that allowing retailers to give them away for free would provide a conflicting message to consumers over waste reduction.
‘Challenge’
But, Lord de Mauley commented that the government is working on a standard that will determine whether biodegradable bags can be distributed for free by retailers, which he said would provide bag producers with the incentive to make them more environmentally sound.
‘It is a bit of an iconic approach because they are not a huge component of the overall waste that is produced in England, but they are very visible and the message that we send to people is very important.’
Lord de Mauley, Defra
He said: There are a number of issues around biodegradable bags that have been raised, but we have set industry the challenge and we feel that it is them to come up with a solution although it is too early to know what that solution will be.
Meanwhile, he also commented that while reducing bag usage may not result in a significant reduction in the amount of waste produced in England overall, with some suggesting that a bag charge in other areas of the UK has resulted in an increase in the use of bin liners and other forms of plastic bag the primary aim of the measure is to change consumer behaviour around waste generation.
He added: It is a bit of an iconic approach because they are not a huge component of the overall waste that is produced in England, but they are very visible and the message that we send to people is very important.
We said we would look at the results from the devolved governments and Wales have seen a 76% reduction which cannot be ignored.
The bag levy, which will be in place in England from autumn 2015 will mirror similar charges already in effect in Wales and Northern Ireland, with a planned charge for bags in Scotland also set to come into effect from October 2014.
Under the measure, retail businesses with over 250 employees will be required to charge customers 5p for every single use carrier bag which they distribute in store.
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