From 2021, plastic utensils will be banned in Europe

The European Union has decided to ban plastic consumer goods, such as plates, cutlery and cigarettes, from 2021, with the aim of: help clean up the oceans.

The ban on single-use plastics approved by the European Parliament in Strasbourg (France) on Wednesday also applies to drinking glbades, food containers and buffer sticks. EU governments have already expressed their support for the ban. Their final approval on April 15th is therefore only a formality.

Plastic waste in the oceans could double by 2030

As plastics account for about 80% of marine debris, EU deliberations on planned restrictions have been accelerated in less than a year. The European Commission, the bloc's executive body, proposed the restrictions in May 2018 and representatives of the EU governments and Parliament, with 751 seats, reached a negotiated agreement in December.

"Plastics poison our seas"Frédérique Ries, a Belgian member who led the bill at the 28-nation badembly. "If we do not act, in 2050 there will be more plastic than fish in the oceans."

The new legislation also sets the goal of collecting 90% of plastic bottles by 2029 and 30% for recycled materials that they contain by 2030.