Illustrative photo (Photo: baotainguyenmoitruong.vn) Hanoi (VNA) – The Malaysian government is working onfronts to phase out single-use non-biodegradable plastics by promotingalternatives and sustainable substances in plastic production, in line with theMalaysia Plastics Sustainability Roadmap 2021-2030, Malaysian news agency Bernama reported on October 5.
Minister of Natural Resources, Environment and Climate ChangeNik Nazmi Nik Ahmad was quoted by Bernama as saying that the country is also finding ways to encourage informalsector entrepreneurs such as warung and smaller stalls, which play a huge partin the community, to remove single-use plastics and replace them withbiodegradable ones.
Nik Nazmi told the media that the government needs to ensure the plastics they havewill truly be biodegradable as most of it currently still needs to be taken tofactories or plants and biodegrade in a controlled environment.
He noted that standards agency SIRIM had come out with the SIRIMEcolabel to make sure that products in the market are not greenwashing andmisleading to consumers. "At the same time, we are encouraging as manyplayers as possible (shift to biodegradable) into the scene," he said.
Nik Nazmi also said that the Malaysian government is makingefforts to get local councils in states to be involved in green initiatives and encourage them to compete with one another and feature their developmentsin overcoming challenges./.
