The European Parliament has voted 571-53 to ban single-use plastics, including plastic cutlery, stirrers, cups, straws, plates, and cotton bud sticks, from 2021. The directive bans certain single-use plastics “where alternatives are readily available and affordable,” and “where there is no real alternative material to plastics, the directive’s goal is to significantly reduce the use.” The bill also includes measures for increased producer responsibility, including fishing gear manufacturers ensuring 50% of their lost or abandoned plastic equipment is collected per year, and cigarette producers covering costs of butt collection and processing. Additionally, the bill mandates that EU states recycle 90% of plastic bottles by 2025 and assigns some waste management costs on producers.
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