A three-year plan aimed at eliminating plastic bags will soon be submitted to the government to curb the annual consumption of 10,000 tons of plastic bags in the Iranian capital Tehran.
Disposable bags are a huge source of environmental pollution. In Iran, several NGOs have geared up to raise public awareness about the environmental impacts of plastic bags, which has helped designate July 12 as the National Plastic-Bag Free Day.
Now, according to ISNA, a plan proposed by the Department of Environment to reduce plastic bag use in Tehran is to be submitted to the government in less than a month, according to an official at the department.
The scheme was devised after consulting relevant bodies and conducting in-depth studies into the habit of using plastic bags in Tehran and comparing it with its global use.
“The plan highlights education and building cultural grounds, which include making slight changes in the commercial sector and households, without harming businesses in any way,” said Saeed Motessadi, deputy for human environments at the DOE.
He added that the scheme focuses on three main objectives: Reducing the production and distribution of plastic bags, reusing plastic bags and gradually replacing them with handbags and other reusable alternatives.
Pointing to the unnecessary budget spent on the production of plastic bags and the time-consuming process of cleaning up the environment from the disposed plastic bags, Motessadi said the department will cooperate with supermarkets to phase out plastic bags and replace them with ecofriendly alternatives.
