SANTIAGO – Chile has joined the efforts to stop the plastic pollution crisis by banning single-use plastic bags.
On Thursday, President Michelle Bachelet signed a bill introducing a ban on plastic bags in more than 100 coastal areas, taking a vital step towards reducing the amount of non-biodegradable plastic that is currently flooding our planet.
Bachelet stated that the move to ban plastic bags was aimed at “taking care of our marine ecosystems.”
“Our fish are dying from plastics ingestion or strangulation, it’s a task in which everyone must collaborate,” Bachelet added.
Chile becomes first American country to ban plastic bags in all coastal cities
The decision to ditch plastic bags is not the only thing Bachelet is planning to do when it comes to environmental issues – her government also plans to create 1.6 million square kilometres of marine conservation areas by 2018.
Chileans produce 1.25 kilograms of waste per day per person on average. That same month researchers found a floating island of plastic off the coast of Chile that measured more than 2 million kilometers in diameter.
