Table 1.
Targets set to ban single-use plastic across the globe and the way Covid-19 disrupted these measures, where relevant.
| Country | Fact | Planned for | Into effect on | References |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| NORTH AMERICA | ||||
| USA | Ban on the use of plastic carrier bags | Maine: April 22, 2020 | Maine: Jan. 15 2021 | (Bomey, 2020) |
| New York: March 1, 2020 | New York: Oct. 19, 2020 | (Gerken et al., 2020, New York State, 2020) | ||
| Philadelphia: July 2, 2020 | Philadelphia: Jan. 1, 2021 | (Cofrancisco, 2020) | ||
| Suspension of existing ban on the use of plastic carrier bag use | California: April 22, 2020 | California: June 21, 2020 | (Staub, 2020) | |
| Connecticut: March 26, 2020 | Connecticut: June 30, 2020 | (Day and Schatz, 2020) | ||
| Canada, Vancouver | Ban on plastic carrier bags | January 2021 | January 2022 | (Gul, 2020) |
| EUROPE | ||||
| UK | Ban on plastic straws, stirrers and cotton buds delayed | April 2020 | October 2020 | (Defra, 2020) |
| France | Ban on plastic carrier bags | 2016 | (Nielsen et al., 2019) | |
| Italy | Ban on plastic carrier bags | 2011 | (Nielsen et al., 2019) | |
| ASIA | ||||
| India | Ban on the single-use plastics | 2022 | Not yet decided | (Aravind, 2020) |
| Papa New Guinea | Ban on plastic carrier bags | 2005 | (Nielsen et al., 2019) | |
| New Zealand | Ban on plastic carrier bags | 2019 | (Nielsen et al., 2019) | |
| South Korea | Ban on plastic carrier bags and disposable single-use plastics (e.g. plastic dishes, straws and cups) | 2018 - Relaxed during Covid-19 for disposable plastic dishes, straws and cups | (Nielsen et al., 2019); (Tan, 2020) | |
| Oman | Ban on plastic carrier bags | 2018 | (Nielsen et al., 2019) | |
| Georgia | Ban on plastic carrier bags | 2017 | (Nielsen et al., 2019) | |
| Nepal | Ban on plastic carrier bags | 2016 | (Nielsen et al., 2019) | |
| Mongolia | Ban on plastic carrier bags | 2009 | (Nielsen et al., 2019) | |
| China | Ban (thin) /Pricing mechanism (thick) | 2008 | (Nielsen et al., 2019) | |
| Bangladesh | Ban on plastic carrier bags | 2002 (not fully enforced) | (Nielsen et al., 2019) | |
| AFRICA | ||||
| Gambia | Ban on plastic carrier bags | 2015 | (Nielsen et al., 2019) | |
| Burkina Faso | Ban on plastic carrier bags | 2015 | (Nielsen et al., 2019) | |
| Madagascar | Ban on plastic carrier bags | 2015 | (Nielsen et al., 2019) | |
| Ghana | Ban (on thin plastic carrier bags) | 2015 | (Nielsen et al., 2019) | |
| Ivory Coast | Ban on plastic carrier bags | 2014 | (Nielsen et al., 2019) | |
| Cameroon | Ban on plastic carrier bags | 2014 | (Nielsen et al., 2019) | |
| Mauritania | Ban on plastic carrier bags | 2013 | (Nielsen et al., 2019) | |
| Mali | Ban on plastic carrier bags | 2013 | (Nielsen et al., 2019) | |
| Malawi | Ban on plastic carrier bags | 2013 | (Nielsen et al., 2019) | |
| Rwanda | Ban on plastic carrier bags | 2008 | (Nielsen et al., 2019) | |
| Ethiopia | Ban on plastic carrier bags | 2008 | (Nielsen et al., 2019) | |
| Botswana | Ban (thin) / Pricing mechanism (thick) plastic carrier bags | 2007 | (Nielsen et al., 2019) | |
| Tanzania | Ban on plastic carrier bags | 2006 | (Nielsen et al., 2019) | |
| Eritrea | Ban on plastic carrier bags | 2004 | (Nielsen et al., 2019) | |
| South Africa | Ban (thin) / Pricing mechanism (thick) plastic barrier bags | 2003 | (Nielsen et al., 2019) | |
| CENTRAL / SOUTH AMERICA | ||||
| Bahamas | Ban on plastic carrier bags | 2020 | (Nielsen et al., 2019) | |
| Belize | Ban on plastic carrier bags | 2019 | (Nielsen et al., 2019) | |
| Panama | Ban on plastic carrier bags | 2018 | (Nielsen et al., 2019) | |
| Chile | Ban on plastic carrier bags | 2018 | (Nielsen et al., 2019) | |
| Colombia | Ban (thin) / Pricing mechanism (thick) plastic carrier bags | 2017 | (Nielsen et al., 2019) | |
| Haiti | Ban | 2012 | (Nielsen et al., 2019) | |
| Oceania | ||||
| Australian Capital Territory | Ban on single-use plastics | 2021 | (Burgess, 2020) | |