EFFECTS ON BUSINESSES: Lawmakers asked the EPA minister whether stores that would be affected by a ban on plastic straws in July have prepared alternatives
Taipei Times
Date: May 07, 2019
By: Lin Chia-nan / Staff reporter
The Environmental Protection Administration’s (EPA) proposed timetable to ban single-
Environmental Protection Administration Minister Chang Tzi-chin gestures at a meeting at the Legislative Yuan in Taipei yesterday.Photo: Liu Hsin-de, Taipei Times
use plastic bags, utensils, cups and straws at all venues by 2030 needs more deliberation before being promulgated, EPA Minister Chang Tzi-chin (張子敬) said yesterday.
Chang made the remarks as he was grilled by several lawmakers on the planned ban on single-use straws.
Chang reported the agency’s achievements and plans for limiting the use of disposable plastic products at a meeting of the Legislative Yuan’s Social Welfare and Environmental Hygiene Committee.
While then-EPA minister Lee Ying-yuan (李應元) in February last year announced a four-stage plan to ban disposable plastic products by 2030, the timetable was not backed by careful evaluation about potential problems and alternatives, Chang said. [FULL STORY]
