Page 35 - Plastics News July 2020

California becomes first state to define Confusion persists as Jakarta implements
'microplastics' in water single-use plastics ban

alifornia, the first state in the U.S. to ban plastic
Cbags, now wants to be the first government in the onfusion reigned in malls and markets in
world to take a look at microplastics in drinking water. CIndonesia's capital Jakarta as a new ban effective
July 1, 2020 on single-use plastics in one of the world's
biggest ocean-polluting nations failed to gain much
traction. Despite repeated announcements over
loudspeakers and signs and banners forbidding single-
use plastic bags, it was business as usual at one Jakarta
market, where shoppers and vendors were unsure what
they should use instead. “I'm confused and also my
buyers are even more confused,” said Hadi, a vendor,
who like many Indonesians uses only one name. “I sell
fish and there is nothing I can use except plastic bags.”
Plastic bags of all sizes and colours were openly in use
all around the ageing Lenteng Agung traditional market
on the second day of the plastics ban. Shopper Khairani
said she backs the ban but only if there are viable
alternatives. Jakarta began its ban on single-use plastic
bags at shopping centres, convenience stores and
traditional markets on July 1 to reduce the city of 10
The State Water Resources Control Board recently
approved the nation's first agency definition of
microplastics, the first step in requiring local suppliers
to test drinking water for small plastic particles that
could hurt human health. On March 19, 2020, the State
Water Resource Control Board for the U.S. state of
California announced the publication of a draft
definition of “microplastics in drinking water,”
accompanied by a staff working document with
additional specifications. The proposed text includes
the following: “Microplastics in Drinking Water are
defined as solid polymeric materials to which chemical
additives or other substances may have been added,
which are particles which have at least two dimensions
that are greater than 1 and less than 5,000 million's massive plastic waste. A similar measure was
micrometers (μm). Polymers that are derived in nature
that have not been chemically modified (other than by earlier adopted by 33 cities and regions across the vast
hydrolysis) are excluded.” Ahead of the vote, chemical archipelago, including Bali province, Bogor in West Java
companies lobbied the board to exclude biodegradable and Banjarmasin in South Kalimantan. Plastic waste
plastics and narrow the range of particle sizes that are last year accounted for 34 per cent of 7,702 tonnes of
considered microplastics, while environmentalists
urged the board to stay firm on including the city's daily waste sent to its major landfill, Bantar
biodegradable substances and a wider range of sizes. Gebang, in its satellite town Bekasi. A 2018 joint study
The board will propose testing methods by July 2021 by Jakarta Environment Agency and Indonesia Plastic
that will target some subset of the defined range of Bag Diet Movement found that the city consumes
microplastics, as the lower end of the range is too small
between 240 million and 300 million plastic bags, or
to be detected using optical microscopes. The board
may also adjust its definition as it evaluates testing between 1,900 and 2,400 tonnes, a year.
methods.

July 2020 35 Plastics News