This archive report was first published on 8 June 2020.
Kenya has taken a significant step towards reducing plastic waste by banning single-use plastics in all protected areas, including beaches, national parks, conservation areas, and forests. The ban, which took effect on June 5, is a logical next step in reducing the amount of unsustainably disposed plastics, following the 2017 ban on throw-away carrier bags.
According to a newly launched trend report by Sustainable Inclusive Business (SIB-Kenya), the ban is expected to have a significant impact on reducing plastic waste. The report notes that plastic production is expected to double over the next 20 years, with most of it being single-use packaging material.
President Uhuru Kenyatta announced the ban in an address at the opening plenary of Day 3 of the Women Deliver Conference in Canada last year. The ban includes cutlery, straws, balloons, PET-bottles, cigarette butts, sweet wrappers, and other products containing polymers that are harmful to the environment when not disposed of properly.
Visitors to national parks, beaches, forests, and conservation areas will not be allowed to have disposable plates, cups, straws, spoons, forks, and water bottles, which are considered environmental pollutants. The penalty for offenders includes up to four years in prison or a fine of Ksh4 million ($40,000).
“Plastic production has surged over the past decades, from 15 million tonnes in 1964 to 349 tonnes in 2018 and is expected to double over the next 20 years, with most of it being single-use packaging material. Plastic has one disadvantage: It does not decompose in nature. Therefore, plastic is omnipresent in our lives,” says the report.
