Govt to ban single-use plastic bags in Islamabad
To make Islamabad clean, green and pollution-free, Minister of State for Climate Change Zartaj Gul has said that the government would impose a ban on single-use plastic bags in Islamabad by August 14.
She made the remarks at the National Assembly session and urged the masses to use cotton bags as an alternative to plastic bags.
Gul said that a statutory regulatory order (SRO) under the Pakistan Environmental Protection Act 1997 was being drafted to give legal cover to the proposed ban.
Besides enforcing the law, the ministry would distribute 5000 cotton bags amongst employees of the federal government and more are being procured for distribution in weekly bazaars and other markets free of cost.
The plan to rid the environment of plastic would begin from the capital city — starting from the parliament building and then extending to government departments before being replicated in other cities. Manufacturers of plastic bags and other items would be encouraged to switch to environment-friendly alternatives such as paper or cloth bags.
This week, the Senate Subcommittee on Climate Change, headed by Senator Mushahid Hussain Syed, held a meeting with students and faculty members of COMSATS University to seek their support to make Islamabad plastic-free and a model city for the rest of Pakistan.
Earlier, ban on plastic bags was imposed in Hunza (Gilgit-Baltistan), Quetta (Balochistan) and also announced in Punjab and Sindh province.