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No new date for Styrofoam ban
– stalled due to prorogation
Months after the date for the proposed Styrofoam ban was extended, a new date is yet to be set and is awaiting approval from the National Assembly before implementation.
Garbage, mostly Styrofoam products, clog the drains of Georgetown.
This is according to a senior official of the Ministry of Natural Resources and the Environment who further said regulations had been drafted and are required to make an appearance before the National Assembly. However, he said, the current prorogation has put the proposed ban on hold.
“In keeping with the EPA [Environmental Protection Agency], the regulations which have been drafted are required to go before the National Assembly. But given the current situation it is on hold,” he said.
He said the ban’s implementation is dependent upon parliamentary approval and being published in the Official Gazette. He added that the EPA and the ministry are “ready to implement once all legal requirements are met”.
Previous reports had said that the extension of the ban was a welcomed move for business
Styrofoam boxes piled up in a drain in Georgetown.
owners. Some business owners had indicated that they needed more time to make adequate provisions ahead of the ban.
However, the ministry official said lack of preparedness on the part of businesses has never been a hindrance to the ban’s implementation.
In fact, he said, stakeholders had been consulted as part of the process of moving towards a ban.
“Stakeholders had to be consulted and made aware of the impacts of Styrofoam on the environment, the alternatives, how they can benefit, and how they can support the ban,” the official explained. He continued, “The policy of the Ministry of Natural Resources and the Environment and its regulatory agencies is of continuous engagement of all stakeholders and this will be sustained even after implementation. This is to allow for greater support and compliance towards the enforcement of the regulations.”
He went on to say that once the ban is implemented the ministry and its regulatory agencies will continue its national awareness programmes on the content of the regulations, the alternatives, and a period for the compliance of all stakeholders.
The official said a date is yet to be set and maintained which will be dependent on the required approval of the National Assembly.
In the meantime, the official said the ministry is working on litter regulations. He said the regulations were gazetted in November 2013 and enforcement began in April 2014. He said the enforcement came after an intensive countrywide education and public awareness campaign.
For 2014, the official said there were 34 reports of littering and dumping. These reports were investigated and relevant citations were issued along with efforts for further sensitization, he said. He further said 11 cases were pursued in court for 2014, one of which was dismissed after witnesses failed to show up. In one case, the defendant is to be re-issued with a citation while the other cases are pending trial.
“Since the commencement of the Litter Enforcement Programme, a total of 269 citations comprising 167 Clean-up orders, 93 Removal orders and 9 direct fines were issued. These and other activities will be heightened to curb and reduce the incidence of littering,” the ministry official said.
In November 2013, the Government of Guyana indicated the proposed ban, effective from June 2014. A number of subsequent consultations had been held. However, one month before the plan was scheduled to be implemented; the Ministry of Natural Resources informed the general public that the ban’s date was being extended.
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