Dubai’s plastic bag tariff to make shoppers more conscious of the environment

Dubai’s plastic bag tariff to make shoppers more conscious of the environment

The tariff goes into effect just before International Plastic Bag Free Day, which is celebrated on July 3 and is a global initiative that aims to eliminate the use of plastic bags

Published: Fri 1 Jul 2022, 6:50 PM

Many shoppers opt to use plastic bags after a shopping trip without a second thought, says Jérôme Viricel, general manager of RECAPP at Veolia Middle East.

However, by imposing a tariff, and including plastic bags in the receipt, customers will be incentivized to move away from single-use plastics towards more sustainable alternatives such as paper and cotton bags.

“The tariff will make shoppers more conscious of the environmental impact of the choices they make,” he told Khaleej Times.

According to one report from The World Government Summit, the average person in the UAE consumes 1,184 plastic bags per year, far exceeding the global average of 307 bags per person. Viricel said that this highlights the importance of the new tariff, and the eventual ban of single use plastic bags within two years in Dubai.

“Plastic bags create huge amounts of litter in the environment and are harmful to both land and marine animals. These bags take hundreds of years to degrade, and they can release toxic substances