Threat to ban plastic in Ghana attracts mixed reactions

Some plastic producers and users have expressed reservations about the hint dropped by President John Dramani Mahama that the government may ban the use of plastic materials, should the manufacturers fail to properly manage plastic waste.

They were unanimous that plastic waste should not be seen as a menace but rather as an avenue to create employment and generate revenue for the state.

Last Saturday, President John Mahama gave a hint that the government might consider placing a ban on the use of plastics, if manufacturers failed to properly manage plastic waste in the country.

He warned that Ghana might go the 'Rwanda way' by banning the use of plastics, if immediate measures were not taken by producers to arrest the situation.

His call came in the wake of various concerns raised from many quarters about the menace that plastic waste caused.

Speaking in random interviews with the Daily Graphic, they suggested that the special fund set aside from the importation of plastic materials be used to manage plastic waste instead of an outright ban of its use.

The acting President of the Ghana Plastic Manufacturers Association, Nana Adawu XIII, said that instead of a knee-jerk approach to the issue, there was the need to approach it holistically, by exploring innovative ways to manage plastic waste.

He said the association and stakeholders had put various measures in place to manage plastic waste, adding that “we’re soon going to hold a meeting with stakeholders to discuss the way forward and make some proposals following the threat by the President .”

Solving plastic waste

For his part, Mr Quaranchie Adama-Tettey, the Programmes Director of the Plastic Waste Management Programme-Ghana, added that the Plastic Waste Recycling Fund, which had accrued more than GH¢65million since 2011 and lodged with the Ministry of Finance, should be used for the purpose for which it was set up.

He said although the fund was available, the bill to implement it was yet to be passed to make it accessible and useful for its purpose of sustaining and maintaining the environment.

“The government must pass a law to ensure the proper disbursement of this fund, which could be accessed by Ghanaians who want to make good use of it,” Mr Adama-Tettey said.

For instance, he said the fund could be given as soft loans to the private sector to expand the recycling capacity, as well as promote waste segregation to make plastic recycling easy, adding that the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), which is into producing biodiesel with plastic waste, could be supported with the fund.

Other innovative way of dealing with plastic waste, he said, was the introduction of biodegradable plastics into the country.

Regrettably, Mr Adama-Tettey said, Ghana was yet to adopt the idea of making the plastics biodegradable after many years of efforts by the programme to get the government to back its call with a policy.

“The government must promote the recycling of waste at source, more litter bins should be distributed to all homes in the country,” he stated.
Mr Adama-Tettey argued that plastic waste was a resource that some countries such as Japan were using to produce oil, while others were using it for the construction of roads and pavement blocks.

Zoomlion

For his part, the Communications Manager of Zoomlion Ghana Limited, Mr Robert Tetteh Coleman, called on the government to reconsider its decision to ban the use of plastics in the country, writes Zainabu Issah.

According to him, the ban was not the solution to the sanitation problem facing the country, but rather there was the need to implement policies that would make the use of plastics unattractive to the public.

For instance, he suggested the introduction of high taxes on the importation and manufacturing of plastic products, which would then make it unattractive for people to use plastics.

Mr Coleman also suggested that if all the 216 metropolitan, municipal and district assemblies (MMDA's) should employ about 300 people to collect plastic waste daily, 64,800 people would get jobs in the short term.

Additionally, he said, there was the need to establish more recycling plants across the country to recycle the plastics into other useable products such as waste bins, plastic bowls, and even school bags for children.

Mr Coleman also called on the Ministry of Environment, Science,Technology, and Innovation (MESTI) to come out with a solution to the plastic waste problem once and for all.

Blowplast

Meanwhile, a sachet-water-bag recycling company, Blowplast, says a ban on plastic bags is likely to increase the cost of living, reports Della Russel Ocloo.

According to a director of the company, Mr Manoj Lakhiani, instead of a ban, people should be educated on the proper way for disposing of plastic sachets.

Blowplast operates a 24-hour plant with the capacity to recycle 25 tons (25,000KG) of sachet water bags daily. Currently, it is able to recycle 15 tonnes daily due to inadequate supply of used sachet water bags.

The sachet bags are recycled into granules for the production of garbage bags, carrier bags and construction sheets.

Collaboration with governmen

For its part, the Plastic Waste Collectors Association of Ghana (PWCAG) said about 20,000 people depended on the collection of sachet water plastics for a living, therefore, banning the use of plastic materials would not be a good idea.

The Chairman of the Association, Mr Godwin Kofi Woasey, said what the association needed were resources to enhance the collection of the waste.

Views of plastic users

Some individual users of plastic expressed mixed feelings about the intended ban.

While some believe that plastic waste must be well managed, others felt there was the need for an outright ban of plastics and resort to the use of paper products, “since that is the case in some countries.”

“I don’t think there is the need for government to ban plastics since that will render tens of Ghanaians jobless,” a plastic dealer said.

Rwanda Way

Rwanda, in 2008, while recovering from the mid-1990s genocide, outlawed the use of non-biodegradable plastic bags with stiff punishment for offenders.

While the law prohibited the manufacture, use, importation and sale of plastic bags, it also carried a one-year sentence and huge fines for offenders.

The move was to protect the environment, as people continued to litter the streets, obstruct sewer systems and hurt marine life with the plastic materials.