ISLAMABAD: In line with its endeavours to discourage the use of plastic bags in the federal capital, the Pakistan Environment Protection Agency (Pak-EPA) is gearing up to intensify the battle against environmentally hazardous bags by focusing on consumers this time.

Previously, the Pak-EPA targeted the manufacturers and distributors in the plastic industry by confiscating plastic bags and imposing financial penalties ranging from Rs10,000 to Rs100,000.

“Commencing next month, Pak-EPA will this time focus on consumers, who are quite aware of its impacts on the environment and human health, but still use plastic bags,” said Dr Zaigham Abbas, who is director labs at the Pak-EPA.

Talking to Dawn, Dr Zaigham Abbas warned that consumers would be fined anywhere between Rs50 to Rs1,000 if caught using plastic bags, glasses, plates, and other single-use plastic items.

Official says fine of up to Rs1,000 will be imposed for using single-use plastic items; Rs1m fine for distributors, makers

It may be noted that the Pak-EPA had earlier decided to penalise consumers with a fine of Rs5,000 over the use of plastic bags. “However, we have now revised the penalty and reduced it to a more practical figure of Rs1,000,” Dr Zaigham Abbas said.

The decision to focus on consumers comes at a time when the use of plastic bags has once again gained momentum in weekly bazaars, markets, and kiosks without any regard for its harmful impacts. A stall owner at a weekly bazaar said they preferred to pack certain vegetables and fruits in plastic bags to ensure their shelf life was longer.

Due to these apparent benefits, degradable mesh bags seem to have disappeared from the weekly bazaars, with some shopkeepers claiming that there was no substitute for single-use plastic bags. A few stall owners who did have mesh bags also preferred plastic bags and would pull one out from under the rug and their seats to pack edibles in them. A grocery store owner in I-8 Markaz argued that there was no viable substitute for packaging flour other than plastic bags.

Civic responsibility seemed to be lacking among consumers, as interactions with several shoppers in the I-8 market revealed that they were unconcerned about the ban or the environmental implications of plastic use.

Nonetheless, Pak-EPA’s Dr Zaigham Abbas said, teams had been notified to commence the anti-plastic bag drive from next month.

At the start of this month, the Pakistan Environmental Protection Agency showcased an initiative in which confiscated plastic bags were converted into green benches and green planters.

Pak-EPA was offering people to turn in environmentally hazardous polythene bags and to make benches from them, said the official while talking about the ‘Green Bench’ project of the agency.

It may be noted that the Pak-EPA is the responsible agency for the implementation of Single-Use Plastics (Prohibition) Regulations in the Islamabad Capital Territory.

“Now Pak EPA has successfully taken an initiative to convert these confiscated polythene bags into green benches and green planters,” Pak-EPA Director General Farzana Altaf Shah told media at the display.

The heat and water-resistant bench on display at Pak-EPA was made from 50kg confiscated plastic bags whereas the planter was made from 8-10kg single-use plastic bags.

In order to discourage the use of single-use plastic items, the Pak-EPA imposed a complete ban on polythene bags in the Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT) under the Polythene Bags Regulations on August 14, 2019.

Later, it initiated an exhaustive consultative process with the line ministries, provincial environment departments, the ICT administration, industries and other relevant stakeholders for developing ‘Single-Use Plastics (Prohibition) Regulations, 2023’ as well as restrictions on the use of polyethene terephthalate (pet) bottles in federal ministries/divisions.

In June 2023, the federal cabinet approved the ‘Single-Use Plastics (Prohibition) Regulations 2023’. The legislation aimed to fight littering and prevent carcinogenic and problematic plastic items from entering the market.

According to Pak-EPA, it would also monitor entry points from Rawalpindi into the capital city to prevent the sale and supply of plastic bags to shops in Islamabad. When revising fines against the use of banned plastic bags, Pak-EPA also bumped up penalties to Rs1 million from the meagre sum of Rs100,000 for manufacturers and distributors for violating the law.

Published in Dawn, February 25th, 2024