A bill sponsored by Yisrael Beitenu MK Esterina Tartman passed its first Knesset reading on Monday, the Plastic Bag bill which is intended to protect the environment and significantly curtail the use of plastic bags. This will hopefully significantly curtail the need for the manufacture of the bags, which demand a large amount of oil and energy, leading to much pollution. In addition explained Tartman, most bags are extremely defiant to environmental concerns and take a very long time to decompose, presenting other problems after they are disposed of.

The new bill is designed to target supermarket checkout lines, a primary offender of environmental considerations concerning plastic bags.

If passed into law, shoppers at the supermarket checkout will have three options, (1) to use bags that decompose in sunlight in about 3-4 months, (2) to purchase a stronger multi-use plastic bag for NIS 4 – 4.5, (3) to use/purchase a canvas or cloth bag which is easily folded away and carried for another shopping trip.

Tartman was pleased regarding the vote, explaining the country is taking a giant step in the direction of environmental awareness.

(Yechiel Spira – YWN Israel)