Was Mauritius really successful in banning plastic carry bags, after promulgation of the regulation prohibiting plastic bags usage?

Abstract

Plastic carry bags are increasingly seen as environmental hazards that threaten human and animal welfare, rather than being modern conveniences. Environmental impacts resulting from improper disposal of plastic bags have been well documented in the literature. To overcome these impacts, many countries around the globe have taken actions either to ban or limit the use of plastic bags. Likewise, in Mauritius, a regulation banning the use of plastic bags was introduced in 2016. Whether this regulation has been successful in stopping the usage of banned plastic bags or not, is the overall objective of the present study. The study was conducted on the Mauritian population. It equally investigated: the quantity of plastic bags utilized before and after regulation; the alternatives to plastic bags used; the level of awareness on environmental and health impacts resulting from indiscriminate disposal of plastic bags; and the perception of the regulation. 65% of the respondent population claimed that the regulation has failed to prohibit the usage of banned plastic bags. A statistical test result supported that the extensive plastic bags users have less preference for alternatives to plastic bags such as cloth bags. The study further examined the possible reasons for the failure and proposes recommendations for the complete banning of plastic bags in Mauritius.