In Backward Move, Brazil Bans Use of Plastic Bags

First Published: 13th of November, 2021

In a controversial legislation that sparked a nationwide outcry and protests, the Brazilian government has banned the use of plastic bags across Brazil. Now shops, supermarkets, and other businesses can no longer stuff their products into a handy, convenient, and hygienic plastic bag and present it to the customer at checkout. Instead, the customer is advised to carry a re-usable, re-washable bag or other container to the shops, markets, and supermarkets.

According to sources inside Brazil, the law was passed about a month ago (Ocotober 2021) with the aim of reducing the impact of plastic waste on the environment. An environmentalist by the name of Rodrigo Padula de Oliveiro explained in his reports that plastic waste is polluting the oceans and harming aquatic life. He pushed the idea for the ban on plastic bags, and in less than 20 days, he got the 20,000 signatures required to submit his idea to the Commission of Human Rights and Participative Legislation in Brazil. Apparently, his idea received approval resulting in the ban on plastic bags across the country of Brazil.

Rodrigo Padula de Oliveiro, in his arguments, cited the fact that petroleum derived plastics take more than 300 years to decompose and suggested that industries should focus on producing more bio-degradable bags such as those produced from cellulose and starch of potatoes and cassavas. Needless to say, the gigantic plastic bag industries which provide employment for hundreds of thousands of Brazilians both directly and indirectly across Brazil will suffer a huge blow. Thousands of people will face unemployment and the Brazilian economy, through the resulting chain reaction, will inevitably plummet. But Padula argues that this is just a huge opportunity to make a greater comeback with something more innovative and environmentally friendly.

Other countries around the world, such as France and the United States, have taken measures to reduce plastic waste by banning certain plastic products. For example, France has banned the sale of plastic cups, plates, and spoons, and the United States has banned the use of plastic microparticles in cosmetics. However, the banning of plastic bags so suddenly, without immediately providing a viable alternative, is unheard of, and, in the opinions of many right-minded people, completely unacceptable.

This sudden ban on plastic bags across Brazil will create a serious health hazard for people as plastic bags play an irreplaceable role in minimizing the spread of harmful bacteria and viruses. Viruses and bacteria will now have an opportunity to spread faster between objects and persons. Aside from this, the lack of plastic bags in homes and businesses will prove to be a tremendous inconvenience and health hazard.

Admittedly, we do need to keep the oceans clean and protect our aquatic life, but better means to that end must be devised. The banning of the use of plastic bags so suddenly and without a viable alternative will do more harm than good to any country, and people of conscience should reject and resist it at all costs.