Hobart has become the first city in Australia to ban single-use plastic takeaway food packaging as part of a wider move to become single-use plastic free.
City of Hobart’s Single Use Plastics By-law came into effect from 1 July, in a move set to drive down the amount of plastic waste going to landfill.
The new by-law bans the provision of single-use plastic takeaway food packaging, as well as other items like cutlery, cups, straws and condiment packaging.
Hobart is the first place in the nation to ban takeaway food packaging, and last year became the first city in Australia to adopt a ban on single-use plastics.
Other states and territories are announcing and implementing bans on single-use plastics, but Hobart’s approach remains the first and most comprehensive.
Lord Mayor, Anna Reynolds, said, “Our city is leading the way nationally in taking decisive action to reduce plastic waste in response to strong community concerns.
“It is really important to get rid of single-use plastics because they are wasteful and create huge problems for our environment.
“We expect this by-law will prevent 600 tonnes of single-use plastics going to landfill every year, equivalent to around 150 trucks full of waste.
“This is a huge step towards achieving our ambitious goal of zero waste to landfill by 2030.”
The mayor said Council would continue to lobby the Tasmanian Government to implement a statewide initiative to reduce single-use plastics.
Data from the National Litter Index suggests that up to half of all litter is related to takeaway food packaging and that as much as 80 percent of that is likely to end up in the region’s waterways.
The Single-Use Plastics By-Law will encourage avoidance of single-use plastics or replacing them with compostable options.
Community consultation found 96 percent of survey respondents said it was not appropriate to continue using single-use plastics.
The by-law was gazetted in early 2020 giving local businesses more than a year to adapt to the new requirements and about half of all Hobart takeaway businesses had already moved away from single-use plastics by the end of last year.
