COLE BAY--The community is waiting for government to enact a ban on single-use plastic bags and other items, according to a recent survey conducted by Nature Foundation “Reduce and Reuse” intern Chantal Mondelice.
Mondelice’s research concluded that residents and businesses are aware of the environmental impact, but many of them choose to still use single-use plastics as the cost is lower than using biodegradable alternatives.
Most businesses do not feel accountable for the impacts of using single-use plastics, as the usage is legal, and they are not willing to change on their own, according to the survey result. Some business owners “gave great responses and solutions regarding lowering single-use plastics, but are still not willing to take the responsibility of making the change until the government officially bans single-use plastics.”
The majority of those interviewed has heard about other islands such as Haiti, Jamaica and Dominica banning single use plastics and wondered why government here is taking so long to join the movement, according to a Nature Foundation statement.
The solutions offered by interviewees included a ban on single-use plastics, introduction of alternatives to single-use plastics such as paper bags or reusable bags, introduction of laws against those who are littering or who are not recycling the right way, and the use of other countries that have banned single-use plastics as an example and motivation to enact similar policies and legislation here.
The research-based questionnaire was circulated among businesses and residents in Philipsburg about their single-use plastic usage and thoughts on the issue. Most stressed in their response the importance of laws being in place to prevent situations such as littering of the landscape.
A total of 14 people were interviewed for the survey – 10 business owners, three employees and one resident. Most business owners ignored their use of plastic bottles while employees of other businesses said more than 45 to 100 bottles are sold monthly at their establishments.
Thirteen out of 14 people responded in the survey that St. Maarten is not being educated enough about the environment.
