By Zareef Muzammil
KAJANG, Sept 22 — The Selangor state government has collected RM1.1 million in charges through the 20-sen-per-bag initiative within the first six months of this year.
State Environment, Green Technology, Science, Technology and Innovation and Consumer Affairs Committee chairman Hee Loy Sian said the collection was carried out by the local authorities and the amount collected was from supermarkets and business premises registered under the programme.
“The collection has been deposited into the trust fund used for environmental programmes such as planting trees and river-cleaning.
“We expect the collection to reach between RM2.5 to RM3million by the end of this year,” Hee said when met by reporters after the launch of the Save the Ozone Awareness programme in conjunction with state-level World Ozone Day 2020 at the Majlis Amanah Rakyat (Mara) Professional College here today.
The Kajang state assemblyman had urged the public to minimise plastic bag usage and conventional straws in order to sustain the natural environment.
He also called for restaurant operators in the state to refrain from providing straws to customers for drinks unless they request for it.
“Even though these items are small in size, when they are disposed of and not managed well in the landfills, they will wash off into the drain and eventually pollute the environment.
“That is why, we hope that everyone can work together and care for the environment, not just by reducing illegal logging activities but also cut down on the use of (plastic) bags and straws,” he said.
The Selangor government had given approval for the plastic bag fee to be collected through local authorities from January 1, this year.
Businesses that are registered under the plastic bag charge collection programme can collect the form from their respective local councils.
Operators are required to clearly display the registration number and certificate on their premises.
