Environmental conservationists in awareness campaign
Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) that promote environmental conservation have vowed not to relent in the fight against the use of thin plastics in the country.
On Friday, CSO leaders marched in the City of Blantyre as one way of raising awareness on the dangers of using thin plastics.
This came a day after the Ministry of Natural Resources, Energy and Mining successfully vacated an injunction that plastics manufacturers obtained in 2015 against the ban on thin plastics of less than 60 microns.
Coincidentally, the vacation came at a time the CSOs had planned to petition office of the Registrar of the High Court to expedite the ruling in the case.
Among other activities, the organisations embarked on an awareness campaign that saw them being joined by students.
They marched from Town Hall in Blantyre Central Business District through Mandala Road while picking up plastic waste along the road.
Chairperson of a committee that organised the march, Tiwonge Gawa, hailed the government and the courts for acting on the issue of thin plastics.
“We are going to convene and map the way forward. Currently, we don’t have statistics in regards to thin plastics that are used in Malawi. So, that’s the information that we need to get,” Gawa said.
Wildlife and Environmental Society of Malawi Chairperson, Paul Taylor, said, with political will, the battle against thin plastics can be won.
The government effected a ban on thin plastics using the 1999 Environmental Regulation Act on the management and disposal of wastes.
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