Plastic bags in North Cyprus will be history by June

Free or paid plastic bags to the consumer, for promotion or campaign will be banned as of June 1st, 2023. The Packaging and Packaging Waste Management (Amendment) Regulation, which prohibits the use of plastic bags aimed at reducing the amount of waste and protecting the environment more, was published in the Official Gazette dated 29 December 2022. The regulation will be enforced 6 months after its publication in the official gazette. With the latest decision taken based on the environmental law, it is aimed to prevent the free supply, sale, promotion, or promotion of plastic bags sold for 25 kuruş at markets since 2018, and to minimize their consumption. The Environmental Protection Department of the Ministry of Tourism and Environment will supervise whether other workplaces, especially markets and stores, comply with the decision, which will come into force at the beginning of June. While very light, small sized and plastic bags with no handles are exempt, those who do not comply with the ban can be reported to the "Alo 123" Environmental Complaint Line. The use of plastic bags has decreased by 60-70 percent following the fee implemented on them since December 1st, 2018. Although the latest decision to ban plastic bags by the Council of Ministers was supported by some citizens, it was also criticized by some. While those reflected their support for the decision to protect the environment, those against the ban argued that the use of plastic bags was practical for shopping. Sevil Beştaş, who came to shop, stated that the decision was appropriate in terms of the environment, “Bags fly around polluting the environment. I usually go shopping with a tote bag. We have cloth bags, we use them. It would be great” Beştaş said. Criticizing the decision, Hüseyin İzler, on the other hand, argued that the ban is acceptable, but that there is no practical alternative solution “Let them ban it immediately, but a little while ago, the cashier wanted to give me a big bag, I refused, but where do I put the items I bought? In my pocket! They need to find a solution to this issue” he said.