The local government intends to add plastic plates, plastic cups and disposable Styrofoam plates to the list of banned non-biodegradable, single-use imports.
The pledge was made yesterday by Raymond Tam, head of the Environmental Protection Bureau. He did not give a date for the ban but said it would take place with industry support and when alternatives became available, according to Macau Post Daily.
Styrofoam meal boxes, bowls and cups have been banned in Macao since the start of 2021. Single-use plastic straws and drink stirrers were banned in January 2022. Plastic cutlery will be prohibited from the start of 2024, Macau Post Daily reports.
[See more: Your guide to recycling stations in Macao]
Tam’s remarks come in the wake of a departmental report, earlier this month, which found that local residents threw out 1.77 kilograms of solid waste each day in 2022 – higher than that of Greater Bay Area neighbours like Hong Kong (1.53), and Guangzhou (0.86).
Local activists have been urging the government for years to take a more aggressive stance to single-use plastics and are calling for a ban on plastic bottles, take away containers and plastic supermarket packaging that account for most of the waste in the city.
Mainland China has a more advanced approach to the scourge and is banning or restricting the production, sale and use of disposable plastic products in stages, setting 2025 as the deadline.
