Seattle Bag Tax

South Africa

Plastic Bag Ban Places Burden on Poor

In 2003, a South African law banning plastic bags thinner than 30 microns (thin enough for a finger to poke through) was put into effect to try and curb the nation’s yearly consumption of 8 billion plastic bags. The punishment for retailers who continued to distribute these bags was set at either a fine equivalent to US$13,800 per offense or a maximum of 10 years in jail. Now, instead of using the thin plastic bags that have been a commonality in South African landscapes, consumers must purchase bags as thick as those used in trash bins if they wish to continue using plastic.

While the environmental advantages are certainly clear, the drawback to such a ban falls directly on South Africa’s poor, who have traditionally used littered plastic bags to make products (including hats and handbags) which they then sell. Such projects become undeniably more difficult, if not impossible, to follow through when the plastic for these items must first be bought. Overall, the long term effects of this ban have yet to be seen.