Poly bags, banned in Bangladesh, have, according to a report published last Friday in this paper, reappeared in full force. Environmentalists have attributed flooding of such harmful bags to lax enforcement of the ban and absence of cheaper alternatives for use. Despite the ban, about 300-350 factories in the capital city alone, as the report said, are producing such bags now used in almost all kitchen markets of Dhaka. On the other hand, the Department of Environment (DoE) has not been able to nab the culprits as it is running short of manpower and magistrates to enforce the law.
A few initiatives were taken to implement the ban imposed on polythene in January 2002. In January 2010, the DoE, however, allowed partial use of polythene bags for transporting fish fries, preserving mushrooms and packaging food items. Now the DoE conducts drives and realises fines from those found to be violating the restrictions. But such infrequent drives have proved ineffective to check production, marketing and sales of these bags. On the other hand, an environmentally friendly alternative is found to be costlier than polythene bags. The Bangladesh Jute Mills Corporation (BJMC), the parastatal entity, must devise ways and means to innovate cheaper jute bags not only to replace polythene but also to increase jute production acreage to meet the growing demands. A jute bag costs between Taka 5.0 and Taka 10 whereas people can get polythene bags free of cost from vendors when they buy any grocery item.
The government took another laudable step when it enacted the Mandatory Jute Packaging Act in October 2010. But the rules required to enforce it have not yet been framed. The related piece of legislation is aimed at boosting the use of jute bags, instead of polythene or polypropylene ones, for packaging items like foodstuffs and agricultural produces. Hence, the absence of the rules has hindered implementation of the guidelines embodied in the Jute Policy 2011 for augmenting the use of environmentally friendly jute products at home and abroad. The government has increased the target of cultivation acreage of jute to promote its multifarious uses. According to the Jute Policy, 2011, around 13 per cent of the country's jute harvest is used domestically. The government had set a target of raising the domestic use of jute to 25 per cent over the next 10 years. If the law can be properly enforced, the domestic use of jute and jute goods will be substantially increased. In the process, this will facilitate ensuring cost-plus prices for jute growers. Initially, products like rice, wheat, sugar, seeds, fertilisers and saplings can be stocked in jute bags.
There must also be a systematic and well-coordinated mass awareness campaign by both the DoE and the Health Directorate about dangers associated with the use of polythene bags. Polythene or plastic bags are made of various chemicals known for toxicity. This is certainly harmful to health and environment. The chemicals used to make plastic bags are xylene, ethylene oxide and benzene. These toxic chemicals are sources of various diseases as well as disorders in humans. They not only provide negative effects on human and animal health, but also can pollute the air, too, harming other living organisms. Therefore, the need for creating wider public awareness of the hazards of the use of polythene or plastic bags can hardly be overemphasised.
