The Environment Agency - Abu Dhabi (EAD) has announced that it has banned single-use Styrofoam products in the UAE from June 1, 2024.
According to Amac News: EAD, this law is part of EAD's "single-use plastic policy" that was launched in 2020.
Styrofoam is a type of plastic called expanded polystyrene and has various uses. As part of this ban, Abu Dhabi has targeted disposable and disposable consumer products.
Prohibited products include cups, lids, plates and drinking containers (including caps and lids) made of expanded polystyrene.
Products of large storage boxes and coolers and trays used for meat, fruit, prepared dairy products and other food for retail sale are exempt from this rule.
EAD Secretary General Dr. Sheikha Salem Al Zahri said that 310 million single-use plastic bags have been avoided by April 2024, and the number of bags distributed in retailers' cash registers has been reduced to the limit.
He added that 95 percent of the weight of these more than 2,000 tons of single-use plastic bags has been avoided. Likewise, more than 1,000 tons of bottles, equivalent to 67 million bottles, were collected last year.
ADDED has shared the Styrofoam ban circular with more than 50,000 commercial establishments and 80 industrial centers involved in plastic production.
ADDED is set to conduct field inspection campaigns at retail outlets and industrial establishments to ensure the ban is implemented across Abu Dhabi from June 1, 2024.