Dubai outlaws single-use plastic bags as UAE claims circular economy strides

04 Jan 2024 --- Dubai’s Crown Prince Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum has issued an official decree outlawing single-use products, including plastic bags and various other packaging products. The ban came into force on January 1, and offenders are reportedly being fined up to AED 2,000 (US$544).

The Emirate is one of the last in the UAE to enforce a single-use plastic ban. In January 2023, the country announced it would prohibit all import, production and circulation of plastic bags nationwide. Meanwhile, Dubai began enforcing a roughly US$0.6 charge for plastic bagging.

Now, Dubai has implemented its own version of the ban, which excludes thin plastic films used to protect fruits and vegetables, as well as trash bags.

The government also intends to outlaw more single-use items, including plastic stirrers, table covers, cups, styrofoam food containers, plastic straws and plastic cotton swabs, as of January 1, 2025.

According to statistics from UAE’s Ministry of Environment and Water, around 11 billion plastic bags are used in the country annually — equivalent to 912.5 kilograms per capita.

Plastic bags are now forbidden throughout the UAE with certain exceptions.Packaging Insights has reached out to Greenpeace MENA for comment.

MENA pollution
A 2002 World Bank report found that air pollution levels in MENA’s largest cities are among the highest in the world, with the average urban resident breathing in air ten times over the level considered safe by the World Health Organisation.

According to the report, air pollution causes about 270,000 deaths a year (more than deaths from traffic accidents, diabetes and acute hepatitis combined) and the average MENA resident is ill at least 60 days in their lifetime due to exposure to elevated air pollution levels.

The economic costs of air pollution are also immense — around US$141 billion per year or 2% of regional GDP.

“Polluted skies and seas are costly to the health, social and economic well-being of millions of people in the Middle East and North Africa region,” said Ferid Belhaj, World Bank vice president for the MENA region.

“As countries recover from COVID-19, there is an opportunity to change course and choose a greener, bluer and more sustainable growth path that has fewer emissions and less environmental degradation.”

COP28
The UAE’s role in hosting the COP28 climate summit last year caused global controversy, with climate campaigners accusing Sultan Ahmed Al Jaber, president-designate for the event, of helping the petrochemical industry sabotage international discussions.

Research published by Corporate Europe Observatory and Corporate Accountability exposed how “The Big 5” (Shell, BP, ExxonMobil, Chevron, TotalEnergies) oil and gas majors have brought more than 400 lobbyists to the UN climate talks since the Paris Agreement was signed at COP21.

By Louis Gore-Langton

This feature is provided by Food Ingredients First’s sister website, Packaging Insights.

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