Bhutan and Plastic Bags

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Recommended: Review of related literature about plastic waste

Economic growth and changing consumption patterns are resulting into rapid increase generation of plastic waste in the world. According to the United Nations Environmental programme (UNEP) (2009), the world’s plastic consumption today has increased to 100 million tons as compared to 5 million tons in 1950s. According to the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) (2008), every year Americans use and dispose of 100 billion plastic shopping bags that generates tons of waste. Similarly, Australia use 3.92 billion plastic bags and about 3.76 billion bags (20,700 tons) are disposed of in landfill every year (Clean up, n.d.). The South Asian countries like India consumes about 8 million tons of plastic products and about 5.6 million tons (70%) of plastic bag waste are generated every year (Central pollution Control Board, 2013). In Bhutan, about 13% of municipal waste content is plastic waste generated in urban areas (Phuntsho, Heart, Shon, Vigneswaran, Dulal, Yangden, & Tenzin, 2007). Therefore, in order to reduce plastic waste, the use of plastic bags are regulated and banned countries such as the United States of America, Australia in 2009, Bangladesh in 2002, China in 2008, Delhi in India in 2009, Tanzania in 2012, and the Philippines in July 2013 (Surfrider Foundation, 2014).
Similarly Bhutan experienced increasing plastic waste generation; therefore Bhutan banned plastics in 1999 and reinforced the ban in 2005 and 2009 with an aim to reduce the plastic waste. Though the use of plastic bag is implemented, it did not seem to achieve the goal because plastics are still in use even in 2014 in Bhutan. The strategy of banning plastic bags to reduce plastic waste did not work in Bhutan and several countries around the world. Even after...

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...ited nations Environment programme. (n.d.). Waste. Retrieved on 8th March 2014 from http://www.unep.org/climatechange/mitigation/Waste/tabid/104349/Default.aspx United Nations Environmental Programme. (2009). Converting Waste Plastics Into a
Resource. Retrieved on 17th March 2014 from http://www.unep.or.jp/Ietc/Publications/spc/WastePlasticsEST_AssessmentGuidelines.pdf
United Nations Statistics Division. (2010). Environment Glossary. Retrieved on 8th March
2014 from http://unstats.un.org/unsd/environmentgl/gesform.asp?getitem=1178
World Bank. (2013). What a Waste: A Global Review of Solid Waste Management. Retrieved on 8th March 2014 from http://go.worldbank.org/BCQEP0TMO0

Youth Business International. (2013). Environmental entrepreneur of the year 2013.
Retrieved on 19th March from http://www.youthbusiness.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/08/Karma-Yonten.pdf

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