South Korea restarts "plastic ban", rejects single-use plastic waste!
South Korea's Ministry of Environment said on April 1 that catering service stores such as cafes and restaurants across the country are prohibited from providing single-use appliances to dine-in customers from the same day.
The applicable list includes disposable tableware such as disposable cups, plates, containers, forks, spoons, and knives, as well as 18 categories such as disposable wooden chopsticks and toothpicks, and disposable plastic tablecloths. When drinking coffee and other beverages in the cafe, only mugs can be used, and plastic cups are prohibited. Disposable plastic bags and shopping bags shall not be provided free of charge, unless there are special circumstances such as separate storage of goods. Disposable paper cups, plastic straws and stirring rods are temporarily allowed to be used until November 24, after which they are banned. However, the Ministry of Environment of South Korea plans to temporarily refrain from imposing fines and other controls until the epidemic situation improves, and guide them with guidance and guidelines.
In August 2018, South Korea implemented the "Law on the Prohibition of Disposable Items in Catering Service Stores", prohibiting the use of disposable items in cafes and other catering establishments. Affected by the epidemic, the local government allowed the temporary use of disposable items from February 2020. However, with the increasing amount of domestic waste during the epidemic, the Ministry of Environment decided to activate the law again to reduce the blind use of single-use items
