To charge bags given out at the cash register – a plan was accepted by the Ministry of Environment sub-committee

Recently the NHK News on-line reported the following:

レジ袋有料化などの案 環境省小委員会で了承

2018年11月14日 4時16分

プラスチックごみの削減のため、レジ袋の有料化を小売店に義務づける方針などを盛り込んだ「プラスチック資源循環戦略」の案が、環境省の小委員会で了承されました。環境省は近く、国民から広く意見を募ることにしています。

政府は海洋汚染が懸念されるプラスチックごみの削減やリサイクルを促進するため、「プラスチック資源循環戦略」の策定を進めています。

戦略の案は、研究者や業界団体の担当者などでつくる環境省の小委員会で議論され、13日の会合で了承されました。

この中では、ペットボトルや弁当の容器など使い捨てのプラスチックの排出量を2030年までに、これまでの実績を踏まえて25％抑制することを目指すとしています。

また、具体策として、レジ袋の有料化を小売店に義務づける方針や、使い捨てのプラスチックの再生可能な資源への代替を進めることなどが盛り込まれています。

13日の会合では、委員からレジ袋の有料化を義務づける場合は、店舗の不公平感をなくすよう、全国一律の制度にするべきだという意見などが出されました。

環境省は戦略の案について、近く、国民から広く意見を募ることにしています。そのうえで、政府は来年６月に大阪で開かれるＧ20サミット＝主要20か国の首脳会議までに、戦略を策定することにしています。

Translation

A plan on "the strategy on plastic resources re-circulation" which had incorporated a policy that required charging the bags issued by the cashier in retail stores in order to reduce plastic trash was accepted by a sub-committee of the Ministry of the Environment. Soon the Ministry of Environment would decide on collecting opinion widely in the country.

In order to promote the reduction and recycling of plastic trash which had caused worries in marine pollution, the government was advancing a decision regarding "the strategy on plastic resources re-circulation".

A plan on the strategy, which was discussed on the 13^th by a sub-committee of the Ministry of Environment that was made up of researchers and people in charge of industrial groups was accepted.

Inside the plan, it was supposed to suppress the disposal of containers such as plastic bottles and lunch boxes by 25% in 2030, based on actual record so far.

Also, in concrete plans, it incorporated the requirement of charging bags provided at the cash register in retail stores, and to advance a substitution for used and disposed plastic with renewable resources.

At the meeting held on the 13^th, opinions had come out that there should be a system applicable to the whole country in uniformity so that any sense of unfairness among stores could be done away when the committee members requested the imposition of bag charge at the cash register.

Soon the Ministry of Environment would try to collect opinion widely from the country about a plan on strategy. On top of that the government would settle on a strategy by the time when the G20 Summit, the summit meeting of key world leaders, held in Osaka in June next year.

              Compared with Canada and Hong Kong,  it seems that Japan is slow in acting to reduce the use of plastic bags when people shopped in supermarkets etc. To bring your own bag when shopping in the market is already a common practice in many countries.