Grocery chains introduces plastic bag fee

plastic bag fee shoppingPlastic Bag. Shopping. Photo: Pixabay

The big grocery chains will voluntarily introduce a plastic bag fee

Norway, Coop and Rema will own their own account introduce a plastic bag fee where the proceeds will go to an environmental fund.

 

The chains now run intense lobbying activities to prevent the authorities from introducing a fee. Instead, they will voluntarily add half a crown in fees, writes Dagens Næringsliv.

– We fear that a much larger fiscal fee that will have a negative impact on consumers. Such a fee will only disappear in the big pot. Therefore, we propose that the fee should go to a fund for environmental measures such as clearing beaches, says Kiwi boss, Jan Paul Bjørkøy, to the newspaper.

He recently met with Minister for Climate and Environment, Vidar Helgesen (Conservatives). Helgesen emphasizes that Norway will implement the EU’s new plastic directive, which gives countries the choice to cut in the plastic bag use or to introduce a fee.

Ministry will assess the proposal

The Ministry will now assess whether the proposal from the grocery industry meets the requirements of the EU. Norway’s grocery stores has had a fee on plastic bag use for many years. Currently the charge is 1 crown for every bag.

According to Helgesen, plastic bags from Norwegian consumers are not a major environmental problem, but plastic production affects Norway as a seafood nation. We get plastic from other places through ocean currents.

During the negotiations involving the state budget, the Government parties the Conservatives (H) and The Progress Party (Frp) agreed with the Liberals (V) and the Christian Democrats (KrF) to introduce a NOK 1.50 environmental tax on plastic bags. This would give the state NOK 1 billion in additional tax income. Just before the introduction in March 2015, the tax was shelved and eventually dropped.

 

© NTB Scanpix / Norway Today

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