High Court ordered Single Use Plastic Ban by 2021 and Enforce ban on Polythene bag immediately

The High Court division of the Supreme Court in Bangladesh ordered the government to impose ban on single use plastic products by 2021. The HC bench of Justice Moyeenul Islam Chowdhury and Justice Khandaker Diliruzzaman came up with the order following a writ petition jointly filed by 11 rights organizations, including Environment and Social Development Organization (ESDO), seeking necessary order.

The HC ordered the government to strictly enforce ban on polythene or throwaway plastic bags across the country through regular market monitoring, closure of polythene manufacturing factories and confiscation of machineries. At the same time, the high court directed the concerned authorities to ban the use of single use plastic in coastal areas, hotels, motels and restaurants across the country within the next one year.

The defendants were ordered to submit a report on the progress of the implementation of the directives by January 5, 2021. 11 rights organizations, including Environment and Social Development Organization- ESDO, submitted the writ petition against use, manufacturing and selling of polythene and single use plastic as public interest litigation on December 17, 2019. Syeda Rizwana Hasan and Sayeed Ahmed Kabir represented the writ petitioners. Deputy Atorney General Saifuddin Khaled appeared for the state party during the hearing.

ESDO’s single use plastic study in 2019 reveals that, about 87,000 tons of single-use plastic waste is generated annually in Bangladesh. Single use plastics include drinking straws, plastic cotton buds, sachets, food packaging, food containers, bottles, plates, plastic cutlery etc. Indiscriminate use and improper management of single use plastic waste are creating massive pollution in agricultural land, rivers, water bodies and ocean.

Following the hearing of the writ, the court issued a rule asking the authorities concerned to explain why their inaction in imposing restrictions on the use of single use plastic products (as per article 6(A) of Bangladesh Environment Conservation Act, 1995) should not be declared illegal. Eight defendants including secretaries to Ministry of Environment, Industries, Commerce, Water resources, Jute and Textiles, Civil Aviation, Director General of DoE have been asked to respond to the rule.

List of Defendants: Secretaries to Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, Industries, Commerce, Water Resource, Civil Aviation and tourism, Textiles and Jute; Director General of DoE; Chairman of Bangladesh Plastic Goods Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BPGMEA).

List of the Rights Organizations : Bangladesh Environmental Lawyers Association (BELA), Dhaka; Environment and Social Development Organization (ESDO), Dhaka; Poribesh Bachao Andolon (POBA), Dhaka; Youth Environment Society, Cox’s Bazar; Save the Coastal People (SCOPE), Barishal; Reach to Unreached (RUN), Barishal; Bangladesh Environment and Development Society (BEDS), Khulna; Initiative for Right View (IRV), Barishal; Association for Community Development (ACD), Rajshahi; Self Help and Advanced Development Organization (SHADO), Rangpur, Sylhet; Sheba Foundation, Mymensingh.

ESDO Initiatives towards ban polythene/Plastic Bag and Single Use Plastic Ban Movement in Bangladesh:

Anti Polythene & No Plastic Campaign, 1990: ESDO is the pioneer organization to ban the use of polythene/ plastic shopping bags in Bangladesh. In 1989, under the leadership of Dr. Shahriar Hossain, Secretary General of ESDO, a few enthusiastic people initiated nationwide anti polythene campaign in Bangladesh.

Polythene Shopping Bag Ban, 2002:

In May, 1993, approximately 500 people took part in a protest supporting the ban of polythene bag production and use. After long efforts, ESDO succeeded to ban the production and use of polythene shopping bags in Bangladesh in 2002.

Microbeads Pollution Study, 2015-16: Environmental and Social Developmental Organization (ESDO) carried out an extensive study on microbeads prevalence, usage in Bangladesh from January, 2015 to October, 2016. Combining primary survey findings, information and secondary information from literature review a national report entitled “Microbeads: Unfold Health Risk and Environmental Pollutant’’ was published in October, 2016.

Ban Single Use Plastic Campaign, 2017-2019: From 2017, ESDO focused on single use plastic pollution in Bangladesh and introduced “Ban Single Use Plastic Campaign. ESDO organized awareness campaigns, rallies, mobile campaigns, workshops, seminars, press briefing, human chain across the country to create mass awareness and raise public voice in support of banning single use plastic. The organization conducted a nationwide survey on single use plastic in 2018 and 2019 and revealed the study report entitled as “Single Use plastic: Hidden Costs of Health and Environment in Bangladesh” in October, 2019.