The first Latin American country banned the use of nylon bags

All commercial businesses in Chile will have a period of 6 to 24 months to completely eliminate the use of nylon bags.

Nylon bags will be completely banned in commercial activities in Chile.(Photo: AFP.)

Chilean President Sebastian Pinera yesterday officially issued a ban on the use of nylon bags in commercial activities, AFP reported. This is Chile's historical milestone in the effort to protect the environment, bringing this "chili-shaped" country to the first country in Latin America to ban the use of nylon bags nationwide.

The new law stipulates that except for packaging (necessary to preserve food), all forms of nylon bags will be strictly prohibited at all commercial businesses such as supermarkets and trade centers. restaurant, restaurant or pharmacy.

Large businesses will have a period of 6 months to prepare for the complete removal of nylon bags, while small businesses have two years to adapt to the new law. Within this period, the use of nylon bags will be limited. Commercial businesses are only allowed to use up to two nylon bags for each transaction. Any violating establishment will have to pay a fine of $ 370 for each nylon bag that is issued.

" There is no doubt that we are taking a historic step towards a cleaner green Chile," President Pinera stressed in a public speech in Chile's central capital, Santiago. "There are 7.6 billion inhabitants in the world. Each of us cannot continue to pollute the environment as if Earth belongs to its own."

On average, each Chilean citizen uses about 200 nylon bags per year. According to Pinera, each nylon bag only takes a few seconds to produce and is only used for a short time and then thrown away, but it takes 400 years to be able to decompose in the natural environment. The Chilean government wants to change the habit of disposable use and disposal of people and towards building a recycling culture and reuse.