Page 357 - DUBAI MUNICIPALITY ENGLISH PR REPORT MAY 2024

Dubai's single-use bag ban begins on

Saturday

Story by Sneha May Francis

• 6d • 2 min read

Dubai is renewing its push towards a more sustainable and greener future with a
total ban on all single-use bags, regardless of the material, from June 1.

Retail outlets will no longer be allowed to charge 25 fils for single-use bags at
checkout, and are not obliged to offer alternatives. Included in the ban are paper
and biodegradable bags.

This is part of an initiative to completely phase out single-use products
to minimise plastic waste and foster a culture of recycling among businesses and
the community.

Businesses caught breaking the rule will be fined Dh200 ($55). This penalty will
be doubled for repeat offences within a year, with a cap of Dh2,000.

The new ban comes six months after Dubai phased out single-use plastic
bags across retail outlets.

“Single-use plastic kills more than 100,000 marine animals in a year,” read a
banner held by a diver at the Dubai Aquarium and Underwater Zoo as part of an
awareness campaign to highlight the adverse impact of plastic waste on marine
life.

It urged residents to “be part of the change and switch to reusable cloth bags”.

Why ban biodegradable bags?

Even though they are more eco-friendly, recycling biodegradable bags is a
challenge.

They require their own recycling process and cannot be clubbed with other
plastic.

And, if left in landfills, they create microplastics that enter the food chain.

https://www.msn.com/en-ae/news/national/dubais-single-use-bag-ban-begins-saturday/ar-
BB1nmyQD