European Council adopts ban on single-use plastics

The European Council today adopted a directive which introduces new restrictions on certain single-use plastic products.

Ireland South MEP Deirdre Clune said: “Figures show that plastic production is 20 times higher now than in the 1960s and is set to quadruple again by 2050. There are so many reports now highlighting the dangers of plastic and we cannot continue to produce and use this amount of plastic, which is impacting hugely on our environment. Reducing the amount of plastics in our oceans and on our beaches is vital to protect marine life and also to ensure that fish, and as a result the food chain, are not further contaminated by plastics.”

“Ireland has led the way on the fight against plastic when it introduced the levy on plastic bags in 2002, resulting in a 90% drop in the use of plastic bags in Ireland. It is great to see that these measures to help reduce the impact of single use plastic are being implemented by the Council.”

The formal adoption of the new rules by the Council today is the final step in the procedure.

Bans the use of certain throwaway plastic products for which alternatives exist

The single-use plastics directive builds on the EU’s existing waste legislation but goes further by setting stricter rules for those types of products and packaging which are among the top ten most frequently found items polluting European beaches. The new rules ban the use of certain throwaway plastic products for which alternatives exist. In addition, specific measures are introduced to reduce the use of the most frequently littered plastic products.

Single-use plastic products are made wholly or partly of plastic and are typically intended to be used just once or for a short period of time before they are thrown away. One of the main purposes of this directive is to reduce the amount of plastic waste which we create. Under the new rules, single-use plastic plates, cutlery, straws, balloon sticks and cotton buds will be banned by 2021.

Member states have agreed to achieve a 90% collection target for plastic bottles by 2029, and plastic bottles will have to contain at least 25% of recycled content by 2025 and 30% by 2030.

The Commission presented its proposal for a directive in May 2018. The Council reached its position on 31 October 2018. Negotiations with the European Parliament started on 6 November 2018 and ended in a provisional agreement on 19 December 2018, which was confirmed by EU ambassadors of the member states on 18 January 2019.