Straws, bags and other plastics will no longer be made in Canada
Some environmentalists say it’s not enough
The first phase of Canada’s single-use plastic ban starts tomorrow.
As of Dec. 20, the following single-use plastic items will no longer be allowed to be made to sell in Canada or be brought into Canada, including:
- Checkout bags.
- Cutlery like plastic knives, spoons, forks and chopsticks.
- Food service wares like takeout containers and cups.
- Stir sticks.
- Straws.
Despite the new rules, don’t expect plastic items to disappear from shelves and restaurants overnight.
Until next December, you can still buy these products.
Plastic rings that divide canned drinks will also be banned from manufacture and import as of June 20, 2023, and from sale as of June 2024.
However, the full ban won’t go into effect until 2025.
Until then, companies in Canada will be allowed to manufacture, import and sell the banned items for export (meaning for sale outside of Canada).
Why is the plastic ban happening?
In June this year, the Liberal government announced a target of zero plastic waste by 2030.
“Our government is all-in when it comes to reducing plastic pollution,” said Steven Guilbeault, Canada’s minister of Environment and Climate Change during a press conference in June.
Banned items only small part of overall plastic waste
According to the government’s own report, the six banned plastic items represent about three per cent of the total plastic waste created in Canada in 2019.
“It's a drop in the bucket,” said Sarah King of Greenpeace Canada in an interview with the Canadian Press in June.
“Until the government gets serious about overall reductions of plastic production, we're not going to see the impact we need to see in the environment or in our waste streams.”
Watch below to learn more about single-use plastics and their impact on the environment:
Read next:
- Your answers: What’s one way you can reduce your single-use plastic use?
- Teen joins COP15 in Montreal to give kids a voice in saving biodiversity
- MAPA: Understanding the people and areas most affected by climate change
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With files from Peter Zimonijic/CBC, Mia Rabson/The Canadian Press
TOP IMAGE CREDIT: Jonathan Hayward, Paul Chiasson/The Canadian Press