Petition to Ban Plastic Bags Reaches Parliament

More than 65,000 New Zealanders, including Helen Clark and Sam Neill, have signed a petition calling for a regulatory ban on single-use plastic bags. Campaigners have marched through the streets of Wellington and reached the steps of the Beehive, where the petition now lies in the hands of Associate Minister for the Environment Eugenie Sage.

Green Peace plastics campaigner Elena Di Palma said the effects of plastic bags on the environment have gone too far and the Government needs to stop in and intervene. “They have a devastating impact on our marine life. One-in-three turtles that have washed up on New Zealand beaches have swallowed plastic bags.”

In February, hundreds of pieces of plastic were found in Raglan waters. Anna Cummins, the co-founder of 5 Gyers Institute, an international organisation working to reduce plastic pollution said, “It was filled with small particles of plastic, with preproduction pellets that we call nurdles, so there was quite a bit in this one small area of Raglan that looked for all intents and purposes like quite a clean beach.”

The evidence shows that parliament needs to take action and a ban on single-use plastic bags is what New Zealanders want. For a country whose marketing slogan is ‘clean and green’, it is obvious we aren’t living up to our word. However, a ban on single-use plastic bags won’t be enough. We need to be more conscious about our consumption rates and how we manage waste at home.

Instead of using plastic bin liners, why not hire a bin in Auckland or other regions in New Zealand? Bins R Us allow people to hire bins of various sizes and they dispose of waste responsibly, so you know everything is being recycled properly. They also provide hardfill bins for heavy materials such as concrete and bricks. If we all practice responsible waste management, we should be okay!