Plastic bag clampdowns "put jobs at risk"

Measures against plastics bags would put thousands of jobs in Europe at risk and are unlikely to have a net environmental gain, according to the European Plastic Films group (EuPF).

Reacting to the proliferation of anti-bag measures around the world over the past year, the EuPF said the plastics bags industry in Europe consists of more than 500 companies employing more than 50,000 people in production and supply chain jobs.

The EuPF is a sector group of the Brussels-based European Plastics Converters (EuPC) organisation, which represents the views of plastics converters in Europe.

Bjørn Hoem, EuPF president, said: “Abandoning plastic bags may not be as environmentally friendly as people think. Production and transport of paper bags, which are 10 times heavier than plastic, produce more of the greenhouse gases blamed for global warming than the lighter [plastics] alternative.”

The EuPF also sounded a warning over viewing biodegradable plastic bags and packaging as the solution to environmental problems. It said that bioplastics “do not decompose in a predictable way in properly managed landfills” and “their use supports a ‘throwaway’ mindset”.

EuPF favours greater re-use of bags and recycling of plastics as these are better alternatives to banning plastics bags.

Hoem added: “We want to promote sustainability by moving away from the single-use and disposability mentality towards that of maximising the utility of everything we use, and thus protecting the environment. Continuous education is the key.”

Reporting of the anti-bag initiatives in the media has been misleading, said EuPF, as restrictions are against bags of all types, in some cases, but coverage has singled out plastics.

EuPF also sought to distinguish Europe’s waste management status from that of many other countries. It said: “The rigour of an EU Packaging and Packaging Waste Directive is not in force everywhere in the world and in some countries consumers are not as well educated and disciplined as they are in Europe.”