Queensland has made a move to ban single-use plastic straws, cutlery and plates by next year. The move will hopefully help protect marine life.
Queensland Environment Minister Leeanne Enoch said that more than 75% of the trash removed from Australian beaches is plastic products, saying that "banning the use of plastic in the catering industry will have a huge impact on business and lifestyle."
Sharon Boyce, chairman of the Queensland Disability Advisory Committee, said many disabled communities rely heavily on straws.
Since the implementation of the ban on disposable plastic bags in 2018, plastic bag waste in Queensland has fallen by "at least" 70%, and in the first year of the 10% container recycling program, the recycling volume of plastic bottle waste exceeded 1 billion bottles.
The state government hopes to ban the use of single-use plastics on July 1, 2021. The second phase will prohibit the use of plastic cups, takeaway beverage containers and large plastic shopping bags.
With disposable plastic straws, cutlery and plates are banned. People can use alternative products such as: disposable paper straws, sugarcane bagasse pulp tableware, paper cups, bagasse plates and some other eco friendly disposable tableware.
