Single-use plastic bags will be banned in Queensland from 2018, with the state Government saying it will not wait for other eastern states to come on board as it goes ahead with its plans.
Queensland Environment Minister Steven Miles released a public discussion paper to ensure that the community has its say on the ban. He stressed it was important that the Government consulted with the community and key stakeholders to ensure the best possible outcome for Queenslanders.
“The scientific evidence about the harmful impacts of plastic in the environment is growing every day and there is considerable support for a plastic-bag ban,” he said.
“Retailers and environmental and community groups who attended plastic-bag workshops in Queensland in 2015, and at a national plastic-bag roundtable in Sydney in February 2016, agreed there was a need to restrict single-use plastic shopping bags.”
Boomerang Alliance and Wildlife Queensland spokesperson Toby Hutcheon welcomed the state’s move towards the ban.
“It’s a significant step forward in reducing plastic litter and its impacts,” he said. “Removing plastic bags in particular will dramatically reduce the impact on native and marine wildlife.
“The Palaszczuk Government came to power promising to act on beverage containers and plastic packaging litter and, in the past two years, it has gone a long way in meeting those promises.
“Now Queensland has bipartisan support for banning plastic bags, it should move to implement this as soon as practical.”