Representatives of the plastic industry said yesterday that the Environmental Protection Admin-istration (EPA) should revise both the details and the time frame given for launching a ban on plastic bags and utensils.
The representatives said the revised plan should try and decrease the move's negative impact on the "100,000 families" who depend on the industry.
Being responsive to plastic products manufacturers, EPA head Hau Lung-bin (
The EPA announced in February that starting July 1, retailers at certain locations would be prohibited from offering customers free plastic shopping bags and disposable dining utensils.
The regulations would affect publicly-operated grocery stores and restaurants at government buildings, public and private educational establishments and military organizations.
The second stage of the policy would begin Jan. 1. Places affected will include department stores, supermarkets, convenience stores, fast-food restaurants and almost every type of retailer, except street vendors.
The EPA will also regulate the thickness of plastic bags being used at stores.
New regulations will eliminate plastic bags with a thickness of less than 0.1mm because people tend to discard thin plastic bags, which burden waste incinerators.
Bags with a thickness exceeding 0.1mm, however, will remain available, but people will have to pay a fee at the checkout counter.
Yesterday, at a public hearing at the Legislative Yuan, representatives of the plastic industry said that the ban would make their lives tougher because the output of the industry has already gone down by 11.2 percent, falling to NT$225.7 billion last year from NT$304.7 billion in 2000.
In 2000, the output accounted for 5 percent of Taiwan's total manufacturing output.
Representatives from the industry said the ban has come at a bad time because analysts have said that Taiwan's plastic industry will not revive within the next three years.
"Before you [the EPA] assist roughly 100,000 employees in switching to other lines of business, how can you just announce this destructive policy without giving us time to adjust?" said Chou Ming-hui (周明輝), executive-general of Taiwan Plastics Commercial Association Union.
In addition, the representatives said that the EPA had decided on the thickness of plastic bags without considering technical factors.
"The thickness set for plastic bags is too unrealistic," said Hsieh Sheng-hai (
Technically speaking, Hsieh said, it is not easy for most manufacturers to produce high-density polyethylene with the equipment at their disposal.
Some representatives said the EPA should offer them compensation for forcing them to purchase new equipment and for assisting their employees to find new jobs.
The EPA warned earlier this month that the fortunes of the plastic industry will be hurt because manufacturers are expected to consume 36,000 tonnes less of the polluting material within one-and-a-half years after the policy's implementation -- a drop of 3.5 percent from current consumption rates.
Independent legislator Eugene Jao (
Some legislators urged the industry to cut their production in order not to indulge consumers.
"We've abused plastic bags for too long. We really need a new policy to help us step by step quit our addiction to the material," said DPP legislator Chou Ching-yu (周清玉).
‘DENIAL DEFENSE’: The US would increase its military presence with uncrewed ships, and submarines, while boosting defense in the Indo-Pacific, a Pete Hegseth memo said The US is reorienting its military strategy to focus primarily on deterring a potential Chinese invasion of Taiwan, a memo signed by US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth showed. The memo also called on Taiwan to increase its defense spending. The document, known as the “Interim National Defense Strategic Guidance,” was distributed this month and detailed the national defense plans of US President Donald Trump’s administration, an article in the Washington Post said on Saturday. It outlines how the US can prepare for a potential war with China and defend itself from threats in the “near abroad,” including Greenland and the Panama
The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) is maintaining close ties with Beijing, the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) said yesterday, hours after a new round of Chinese military drills in the Taiwan Strait began. Political parties in a democracy have a responsibility to be loyal to the nation and defend its sovereignty, DPP spokesman Justin Wu (吳崢) told a news conference in Taipei. His comments came hours after Beijing announced via Chinese state media that the Chinese People’s Liberation Army’s Eastern Theater Command was holding large-scale drills simulating a multi-pronged attack on Taiwan. Contrary to the KMT’s claims that it is staunchly anti-communist, KMT Deputy
RESPONSE: The government would investigate incidents of Taiwanese entertainers in China promoting CCP propaganda online in contravention of the law, the source said Taiwanese entertainers living in China who are found to have contravened cross-strait regulations or collaborated with the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) could be subject to fines, a source said on Sunday. Several Taiwanese entertainers have posted on the social media platform Sina Weibo saying that Taiwan “must be returned” to China, and sharing news articles from Chinese state media. In response, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) has asked the Ministry of Culture to investigate whether the entertainers had contravened any laws, and asked for them to be questioned upon their return to Taiwan, an official familiar with the matter said. To curb repeated
Myanmar has turned down an offer of assistance from Taiwanese search-and-rescue teams after a magnitude 7.7 earthquake struck the nation on Friday last week, saying other international aid is sufficient, the National Fire Agency said yesterday. More than 1,700 have been killed and 3,400 injured in the quake that struck near the central Myanmar city of Mandalay early on Friday afternoon, followed minutes later by a magnitude 6.7 aftershock. Worldwide, 13 international search-and-rescue teams have been deployed, with another 13 teams mobilizing, the agency said. Taiwan’s search-and-rescue teams were on standby, but have since been told to stand down, as