Plastic bags incinerated, not buried

The Straits Times (www.straitstimes.com)
Published on Jan 21, 2011
Plastic bags incinerated, not buried
THE concerns with plastic bags relate to them being sent to landfills where they can pollute the environment ("Charge a fee for plastic bags"; Jan 14).

In Singapore, plastic bags are sent to our waste-to-energy plants for incineration, rather than to our landfill. Notwithstanding this, as part of its 3R (Reduce, Reuse, Recycle) efforts, the National Environment Agency currently encourages the public and community to reduce their packaging waste as well as reuse items that are reusable.
Retailers such as NTUC FairPrice and Ikea have also implemented their own schemes to encourage the use of customers' own bags or discourage the overuse of plastic bags. We would encourage more organisations to step forward to adopt more environmentally friendly practices rather than making it mandatory to charge a fee for plastic bags.
Low Fong Hon
Director
Waste and Resource Management Department
National Environment Agency
Copyright © 2010 Singapore Press Holdings. All rights reserved.
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21Jan2011: Plastic bags incinerated, not buried.