CEA working on prohibiting single use plastic

By Sheain Fernandopulle  

The Central Environmental Authority (CEA) is studying on imposing a ban on the usage of single use plastic or disposable plastics like drinking straw, CEA Director of Investigation N. F. Gamage told Daily Mirror.  

He said disposable plastics had become a threat to the existence of environment and added it was pivotal to take prompt measures to curb the usage of single 
use plastics.  

“Single-use plastics, or disposable plastics, are used only once before they are thrown away or recycled. These items are things like plastic bags, straws, coffee stirrers, soda and water bottles and mostly food packaging,”  Gamage said.   He said they were to start discussions with regard to the ban on single use plastic with the newly-elected Government and added they hope this ban would also become effective as the existing polythene ban. Single use plastics have become a major threat to people, environment and all forms of life. Sri Lankan soil, coast line, rivers, wetlands, lakes and other ecosystems have already become the dumping ground and polluted due to plastic material and micro-plastics.   
It was recently reported that 60,000 sq km of the Bay of Bengal has now become a dead zone due to plastics. The killing of the ocean will have a huge negative impact on the fishing communities around the country.   

According to the UN Environment report in 2018, single-use plastics are ‘items intended to be used only once before they are thrown away or recycled’.