MUSCAT: Oman plans to ban single-use plastic bags starting next year, joining a growing movement to fight global pollution, a top official at Ministry of Environment and Climate affairs (MECA) said.
On Tuesday, MECA officials held a meeting to discuss the draft of the regulation that is likely to be implemented next year. MECA is currently awaiting an approval from Ministry of Commerce and Industry.
As per the draft, supermarkets and retailers will be barred from offering plastic carrier bags from next year and it will be replaced with recyclable/reusable ones.
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According to the MECA official, they will be given one-year grace period to completely phase out the use of plastic bags. “People have had enough of this (plastics) and it is spoiling our environment and our lives. It’s time we stop this,” he said.
The World Economic Forum estimates that worldwide total volume of plastic has reached 8.3 billion metric tons, the equivalent of more than 800,000 Eiffel Towers. Of this enormous amount, 6.3 billion metric tons have been disposed as waste.
The move by Oman comes as countries and cities across the world have been seeking to ban or phase out the use of plastic products, and plastic bags in particular.
The meeting by MECA was attended by a number of members of the team preparing and drafting the decision to prevent the use of single-use plastic shopping bags.
