世界關(guān)注中國禁用塑料袋

1、世界關(guān)注中國禁用塑料袋中國國務(wù)院辦公廳年初發(fā)出通知，稱購物袋已成為白色污染”的主要來源，今后各地應(yīng)禁止生產(chǎn)、銷售、使 用超薄塑料購物袋，并將實行塑料購物袋有償使用制度。自2008 年 6 月 1 日起，在所有超市、商場、集貿(mào)市場等商品零 售場所實行塑料購物袋有償使用制度，一律不得免費提供塑 料購物袋。塑料購物袋與人們的日常生活休戚相關(guān)，它為消費者提供便利的同時，由于過量使用及回收處理不到位等原因，也 造成了嚴(yán)重的能源資源浪費和環(huán)境污染。特別是超薄塑料購 物袋容易破損，大多被隨意丟棄，成為主要的“白色污染”源。目前環(huán)保已成為全世界高唱的主旋律，中國這次無疑體現(xiàn)了大國風(fēng)范和責(zé)任感。問題是，塑料袋引

2、發(fā)的環(huán)境問題絕k. *朝一夕可以解決，之前也有不少國家做過類似嘗試，這當(dāng)中有成功的經(jīng)驗，也有失敗的教訓(xùn)。全世界都迫不及待地中國能為世界的環(huán)保事業(yè)添上成功的一筆嗎？There is an old Chinese expression: if you want to correctsomething that others do, you should first correct it yourself. It s mos an expression the Chinese government can claim it is following in its efforts to tackle

3、one of the country significant litter problems: the plastic bag.The issue of 1)flimsy plastic bags may seem trivial on thelist of environmental challenge s facing one of the world emerging superpowers, but its 2)ramifications are more than 3)aesthetic. Discarded plastic bags disrupt waterways, 4)clo

4、g 5)sewers, and 6)choke soil. So, as one of its new year resolutions, China has pledged to ban the use of free and flimsy plastic bags by introducing levies. 7)As of June this year, plastic bags must be paid for, and they will be banned from all public transport, airports and scenic places.Plastic i

5、s fantastic. It s 8)versatile, durable, waterproof,convenient and very, very cheap. But with all the benefits of plastic bags comes a long list of 9)nagging problems, and the most problematic of all is their 10)sheer persistence. Depending on the thickness, plastic bags take between 20 and 1,000 yea

6、rs to break down in the environment. They release toxic gases when they burn; they create 11)stagnant pools which can become a12)breeding ground for 13)malarial mosquitoes; and they14)suffocate or disrupt the indigestion of animals thataccidentally consume them.So, how easy is it to re-gulate a 15)b

7、lanket ban onsomething so 16)integral yet so destructive to modern living?And does it work? In Europe, good waste management hass situation ismeant that the 17)menace of the plastic bag has not been unleashed as it has in the developing world. China perhaps better reflected by experiences on the con

8、tinent ofAfrica.In South Africa, according to the United NationsEnvironment Programme (UNEP), a ban is already working.Before action was taken to 18)curb the problem, consumers inSouth Africa went through 8 billion plastic bags a year. The the trueproblem was so bad that plastic bags became known as

9、 the national flower ”, competing with the 19)proteanational flowerfor the 20)limelight. South Africas answer was to ban the manufacture, trade and commercial distribution of plastic bags with a thickness of less than 30 21)microns (0.03mm). Anything below 30 microns can blow away in even a light wi

10、nd, and cannot be easily recycled. Increasing the thickness of plastic bags has been found to have a positive impact on littering. A levy is in place, and the penalties for non-22)compliance are tough: fines and even imprisonment.Before regulation in South Africa, the cost of producing, delivering a

11、nd distributing plastic bags was hidden in food prices, so even if customers did not want a bag, they would payand UNEP reports thatfor it. Now they can make the choice consumers have benefited from lower food prices as a result.版全文本文為全文原貌 未安裝 PDF 瀏覽器用戶請先下載安裝But bans have not been so successfulevery

12、where. In Bangladesh, serious and repeated flooding, which resulted in major loss of life, was reportedly linked to 23)drain 24)blockages caused by plastic bags. The floods prompted the government to impose a ban on the sale and use of 25)polythene bags in the capital city, Dhaka, in 2002. But no re

13、sults are available on its success, suggesting there has been little evidence of a positive outcome on the streets. In Kenya, roughly 82% of plastic bags used each year end up on the streets or in the 26)sewage system. No outright ban has been considered, and even levies have been opposed by those w

14、ho say it will kill an industry that supports thousands of people. InSomaliland, regardless of a ban prohibiting the importation, production and use of plastic bags since March 2005, a UNEP report suggests that both importation and local productioncontinue.Yet even when there are alternatives such a

15、s paper bags orboxes available, consumers conti-nue to opt for the plastic bag. andIt seems that we are addicted. It remains to be seen whetherChina can 27)kick the habit, or find a truly fantastic28)biodegradable plastic bag.中國有句古話：以身作則（若想糾正別人的錯誤，必須從自身做起）。這正是目前對中國政府的寫照中國正全力著手解決這個國家最棘手的垃圾問題之一：塑料袋。作為

16、正在興起的超級強國之一，中國面臨著一系列環(huán)境問題，輕薄如翼的塑料袋看似微不足道，但是由它引發(fā)的可不僅僅是美觀問題：廢棄的塑料袋堵塞排水管和下水道，還 禁止超薄塑料袋的免費使用。從今年六月一日開始，人們用 塑料袋要付錢，在所有的公共交通工具、機場和風(fēng)景區(qū)，塑 料袋都將被全面禁止。污染土壤。因此，中國今年的新年決心之一就是通過征稅來塑料袋是個神奇的東西多用途、 耐用、防水、 方便，而且非常非常便宜。但伴隨著塑料袋這種種好處而來的是諸 多令人頭痛的問題，其中最突出的就是它的耐分解性。取決于厚度的不同，塑料袋要花 20 年到 1000 年不等的時間才 在環(huán)境中分解。它們?nèi)紵龝r會釋放出有毒氣體；堆積時會

17、形 成死水潭，那會成為傳播瘧疾的蚊子的繁殖溫床；誤食了塑 料袋的動物也難免會消化功能失常。那么，要下令全面禁止與我們的現(xiàn)代生活如此緊密相關(guān)卻又具有極大破壞力的塑料袋，究竟會有多大難度呢？禁令 會有效嗎？在歐洲，完善的垃圾管理制度意味著塑料袋的危 害能得到控制，而在發(fā)展中國家卻不同。非洲大陸的經(jīng)驗也許能更好地反映中國所面臨的挑戰(zhàn)。根據(jù)聯(lián)合國環(huán)境規(guī)劃署提供的資料，塑料袋禁令在南非很有成效。南非政府采取措施解決問題之前，南非的消費者 每年消耗的塑料袋達 80 億個。塑料袋問題如此嚴(yán)重，以至 于它一度成為能與真正的國花山龍眼搶鏡頭的“新國花” 成為令人矚目的焦點。南非采取的措施是禁止制造業(yè)、貿(mào)易 以及

18、商業(yè)部門使用厚度小于 0.03 毫米的塑料袋。 任何厚度小 于 0.03 毫米的物體都很容易隨輕風(fēng)飄走， 并且不容易被回收 利用。實踐證明，增加塑料袋的厚度對垃圾處理有益處。同 時，南非還對塑料袋的使用進行征稅，而且違反禁令受到的 處罰是相當(dāng)嚴(yán)厲的，會導(dǎo)致罰款甚至入獄。南非采取這些措 施之前，生產(chǎn)、運輸和分發(fā)塑料袋的成本是隱含在食物價格 里面的， 因此消費者即使不想要塑料袋， 他們也得為之付費?，F(xiàn)在他們可以作出自己的選擇。聯(lián)合國環(huán)境規(guī)劃署的報告指出，禁令執(zhí)行后，食物價格有所下降，消費者成為受益者。但禁令并非在任何國家都取得成功。在孟加拉國，兇猛頻繁的洪澇災(zāi)害導(dǎo)致大量人口死亡，有報道指出，洪災(zāi)的起 因之一就是塑料袋堵塞了下水道。 2002 年，洪水災(zāi)害使政府決心頒布禁令，禁止聚乙烯袋在該國首都達卡的出售和使 用。但沒有資料說明此舉的成效，結(jié)果似乎并不理想。在肯尼亞， 每年有大約 82%的塑料