The Environmental Protection Administration (EPA) on Tuesday said it plans to promote reusable cup-sharing in baseball stadiums later this year, as part of efforts to normalize their use.
Greenpeace Taiwan earlier in the day held a news conference to share the results of its survey of opinions on reusable cup sharing.
Among those who said they would not use shared cups, the top three reasons cited were cleanliness (72 percent), already having their own cup (52 percent) and no price incentive (20 percent), Greenpeace said.
Photo: Chen Chia-yi, Taipei Times
Additionally, 76 percent of respondents said it would make no difference compared with single-use cups, it said, recommending that the government mandate a NT$5 discount to encourage their use, as well as impose a fee for single-use utensils.
All 22 local governments already have plans to phase out single-use cups, 17 of which have set a timeline for implementation, EPA Recycling Fund Management Board executive director Wang Yueh-bin (王嶽斌) told reporters.
Among them, Taipei, New Taipei City, Kaohsiung and Taoyuan have already launched the first stage of their plans, he said.
To address cleanliness concerns, Wang said the EPA would strengthen guidance and oversight.
It also plans to work with local governments to roll out cup-sharing at large sports events, with the aim of introducing the system to people who might not otherwise encounter it, he added.
The Taoyuan City Government has already introduced cup-sharing at baseball stadiums, with assistance being given to other governments to hopefully follow suit later this year, Wang said.
The Greenpeace survey showed that 96 percent of respondents had heard of cup-sharing, but only 31 percent had used it.
However, those who had used it reported a positive experience, with 93 percent saying they would use it again.
People taking advantage of the service used it 4.3 times on average over the past six months, showing that they have been satisfied with the experience, Greenpeace said, adding that getting more people to try it is the key to more widespread adoption.
EPA data show that in the first six months of the year, 1,844 shops rented out a total of 103,343 cups.
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