The Tamil Nadu government is gearing up to keep a promise it made as early as in June — to “gift a plastic-free state to future generations”. On 5 June— world environment day— the Tamil Nadu government announced a ban on ‘one-time use and throwaway plastics’ such as plastic sheets for food wrapping, dining table spread, plates, teacups and tumblers, water pouches and packets, straw, carry bags and flags, irrespective of their thickness.
Retail outlets, grocery shops among others have already been asking people to bring cloth bags. The Chennai Corporation even asked residents on 31st December to surrender banned plastics.
It is going to be an enforcement phase starting January, then the government will soon impose a fine for stricter implementation of the ban.
Amidst cries for exemption, it looks like the government may have to give in to certain appeals as it is reportedly considering relaxation on the ban of paper cups after weighing in on the pros and cons, Plastic constitutes for only 6 percentage of every such cup.
While the state government says it is doing all it can to successfully implement the ban, key stakeholders such as traders and manufacturers believe Tamil Nadu is not ready.
The Tamil Nadu Hotels Association wants food grade plastic covers to be out of the purview of the ban. It has claimed that the hotel industry would “face a lot of problems” in packaging food, especially liquids. It has asked for a grace period of six months so that they can find environmentally friendly alternatives to pack food.
State-owned Tamil Nadu Newsprint and Papers Limited (TNPL) has sought an exemption for plastic-coated paper cups. Although the actual stock produced by TNPL does not have any plastic, a thin film of food grade low-density polyethene is added by paper cup converter units to create a liquid barrier before it’s sold for end use.
TNPL managing director S Sivashanmugaraja said: Plastic coating in paper cups accounts for just 5 per cent of the material and 95 per cent is paper, therefore these cups are recyclable, biodegradable and totally eco-friendly. Because of its biodegradable nature, no other state has imposed such a ban in India." Besides, he said the government has not banned TetraPack, which is made from wood pulp in the form of paperboard, as well as thin layers of aluminium and polyethene. “Compared to TetraPack, paper cups consist of only 5 per cent polyethene,” he said.
The Tamil Nadu Plastics Manufacturers Association (TAPMA) said there is a clear discrimination in the way the government is attacking retail trade. “What we understand at this juncture, the ban will hit common man, besides bringing the plastic industry to a standstill. Initially, we thought food grade plastic used in packaging is exempted, but that is not the case now."
Over 470 packaged drinking water manufacturers in the state are part of the Tamil Nadu Packaged Drinking Water Manufacturers Association (TNPDWMA) which has sought an exception from the ban for water packets. “The government order clearly states only plastic below 50 microns is banned from January 01, 2019. However, the water sachets, which are well above 50 microns, have been added,” M Rajasekeran, president of TNPDWM, said.
CRITICISM
Arguments by manufacturers and other stakeholders are on the grounds that alternatives to plastic are not yet widely — or cheaply — available with the manufacturing infrastructure not yet in place. Further, they argue that consumers have yet to alter behaviour on a significant scale so as to make the ban seem viable. Another argument is that the government had targeted the relatively ‘smaller fish’ rather than those plastic products that cause the most damage. “The real issue is with non-recyclable plastics like the multi-laminated packaging. The products that government banned are all recyclable,” complained G Sankaran, president, Tamil Nadu and Puducherry Plastic Association.
KG Ramanathan, president, Indian Centre for Plastics in the Environment, said sudden bans can be devastating in low-income communities where small businesses operate on tiny margins. “Imposing a ban on plastic products without any national policy would be impractical. It would affect the consumer, as well as the industry, and many may migrate to the neighbouring State.”
Tamil Nadu Plastics Manufacturers’ Association said: Single-use plastics are used by common man to ensure hygiene and quality at affordable prices. Hence, the total ban is also in violation of the principles of natural justice.
This is not the first time such a ban has been proposed in the state. In fact, Tamil Nadu attempted such a ban in 2002 when J Jayalalithaa was Chief Minister, but it hardly materialised. Further, a ban on plastic carry bags is nothing new. It has been in effect in Tamil Nadu since 2015.
Banned
Plastic sheet/cling film used for food wrapping
Plastic sheet used for spreading in dining table
Plastic thermocol plates
Plastic coated paper plate
Plastic coated paper cups
Plastic tea cup
Plastic tumbler
Thermocol cups
Water pouches/packets
Plastic straw
Plastic carry bag of all sizes and thickness
Plastic coated carry bags
Plastic flags
Non-woven polypropylene bags
Permitted
Plastic bottles
Plastic banners/board
Plastic spoon, Plastic oven sack
Packed grocery items
Compostable carry bag of any thickness
Tetrapack, Plastic containers
Plastic sachets, stationery
Alternatives
Plantain leaves, areca nut leaves
Aluminium foils, Paper rolls
Lotus leaves, Paper straw
Glass/metal tumblers
Bamboo, wooden products
Cloth/paper/jute bags
Paper/cloth flags, Ceramic wares
Earthen cutleries and pots
Will TN succeed in its zero-plastic goal without too much collateral damage? 2019 will tell.
(With inputs from Express News Service)