According to the report submitted to the Knesset, the Israeli public is taking responsibility and takes every bag seriously as there is an 80% reduction in consumption of disposable bags in 2017. This meant saving more than 7,000 tons of plastic bags. The Ministry of Environmental Protection is examining additional measures that will lead to further reduction in consumption of disposable bags.

The large retail chains reported the sale of 378 million disposable bags in 2017 compared with 1.753 billion bags in 2016. The overall market declined by 53%.

Minister of Environmental Protection MK Ze’ev Elkin: “The results speak for themselves. The citizens of Israel have warmly embraced the environmental change and economic savings inherent in this. We have set goals to reduce the use of bags based on the great success of the law. The Ministry of Environmental Protection will continue to maintain the cleanliness of the public space and the beaches.”

Director General of the Ministry of Environmental Protection, Yisrael Danziger: “As part of the waste revolution led by the Ministry of Environmental Protection, we are also dealing with the field of bags, and public cooperation is most impressive. We are encouraged by the public’s commitment to other waste areas as part of our policy, including construction waste and household waste, as well as the establishment of facilities for the treatment and regulation of the marketplace.”

In 2017, the large retail chains reported sales of 378 million disposable bags, while in 2016, before the law went into effect, about 1.753 billion bags were purchased by retailers for distribution to customers. The figure represents a dramatic reduction of about 1.375 billion bags – that is, about 80% comparing the years.

This means that the public did not consume 7,091 tons of disposable plastic bags – equivalent to the weight of about 395 buses.

According to the size of the retail market, in 2016 the State of Israel consumed 2.8 billion disposable bags or 325 bags per capita, while in 2017 it consumed 1.5 billion bags, or 171 bags per person. In this manner, the rate of reduction of consumption of bags of carrying in the State of Israel is about 53%.

The Ministry of Environmental Protection set targets for reducing the use of bags for future years based on these results. A memorandum of regulations recently submitted by the Ministry indicates that in order to maintain success, a target of 170 bags per person was set for the years 2019-2025; 120 bags per person between 2025 and 2030; And every year from 2031 onwards – 65 bags per person, an ambitious reduction target of 80% for the entire market.

In order to meet the objectives of reducing the use of disposable bags, the Ministry plans to examine additional possibilities and mechanisms, including a future mechanism for the prohibition of free distribution of disposable bags in all Israeli businesses and extensive enforcement of packaging, manufacturers and importers.

(YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem)