Apulia bans plastic on beaches, only biodegradable tableware and paper bags allowed
Environment — di Cecilia Bergamasco
From next summer, the use of single-use plastic objects and plastic bags will be prohibited on Apulian beaches.
Apulia bans plastic on beaches, only biodegradable tableware and paper bags allowed
From next summer, the use of single-use plastic objects and plastic bags will be prohibited on Apulian beaches.
Apulia is the first region to ban single-use plastic and plastic bags on its beaches. The only exception, in the first year, will be a temporary exemption on the sale of plastic bottles, as the number of companies using compostable products is still too small. The announcement was made by the regional councillor for the Budget with responsibility for maritime state property, Raffaele Piemontese, following discussions with representatives of beach operators' trade unions and environmental associations.
"With this ordinance, Apulia brings forward by two years the implementation of the EU directive that will ban single-use plastic from 2021. It is a great milestone for beaches that are increasingly sustainable from an environmental point of view," said Piemontese.
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Only compostable materials on Apulia's beaches
From next summer – explains Cna Puglia – 200 Apulian beach operators will reduce their use of single-use plastic, which will be replaced by containers and utensils made from biodegradable cellulose (cups, cutlery and plates), and they will use only paper bags. "The reason lies in the fact that, according to the European Parliament's report, bottles and screw caps currently account for around 20 per cent of all plastic found at sea," says Fabrizio Santorsola, president of Cna Balneatori.
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Separate waste collection and reduced plastic consumption
Following the European Parliament's approval of the measure to ban, from 2021, certain plastic products such as cutlery, cotton buds and straws, Cna Balneatori Puglia has begun to pay particular attention to the gradual elimination of those products that make up 49 per cent of marine waste. Despite the fact that separate waste collection has been compulsory on Apulian beaches for years, the managers of beach establishments have realised that this is not enough, and have therefore decided to reduce consumption. "Today – explains Cna Puglia – we are taking matters into our own hands with the intention of reducing our own use of single-use plastic, which will be replaced by containers and utensils made from biodegradable cellulose, cups, cutlery and plates, and by the use of paper bags."