December 10. 2018 - Every citizen of Montenegro annually uses an average of 400 to 600 plastic bags. No plastic bag is recycled in Montenegro, most often ending in nature. This is worrisome data, says Minister of Sustainable Development and Tourism Pavle Radulovic, and emphasizes that Montenegro will be in great danger if we do not start to address the problem. He announces the ban on the use of plastic bags and the introduction of a deposit for PET packaging.
For the average citizen of Montenegro, it is unthinkable to go a day without plastic bags and to go to a store with a reusable bag.
It is difficult to calculate if we use plastic bags because we pay for them, said the trade chains. Citizens perceive bills they have to pay as an attack on their budget rather than on the protection of the environment.
"A large number of consumers who have had a rather negative response to the payment of the bills, which lasts, are not accustomed to it, so we are forced to provide them with fewer bills we don't charge," said one trading chain PR Olivera Šuškavčević.
It is not just a plastic bag problem but the general plastic waste that we see at every turn. "Citizens are misbehaving because they throw waste where they shouldn't, but the role of local self-government and institutions is great regarding setting a system that will function and which citizens will have to respect," said Milica Kandić from the NGO "Green Home."
NGO "Zero Waste" submitted a petition to cancel the plastic bags at the Ministry of Sustainable Development and Tourism. "Biodegradable bags used in stores are hazardous. They slip into the microplastics, go to the ground and water, and end up on our plates, "said Olga Sanjina-Miranovic from NGO “Zero Waste."
There must be a solution to remove the most expensive plastic bags, but also the PET packaging, the Minister of Sustainable Development and Tourism is aware. "We are also actively working on banning plastic bags and introducing a deposit for PET packaging although we will not substantially solve the problem," Radulovic said.
Accurate plastic waste data does not exist, but estimates say that every citizen of Montenegro uses, on average, 400 to 600 plastic bags per year, with no single recycled bag.
Source: Marija Radulović, RTCG
