Panama on Saturday became the first Central American nation to ban single-use plastic bags to try to curb pollution on its beaches and help tackle what the United Nations has identified as one of the world's biggest environmental challenges. The isthmus nation of roughly 4 million people joined
PANAMA CITY - Panama on Saturday became the first Central American nation to ban single-use plastic bags to try to curb pollution on its beaches and help tackle what the United Nations has identified as one of the world's biggest environmental challenges.
Supermarkets, pharmacies and retailers in Panama must stop using traditional polyethylene plastic bags immediately, while wholesale stores will have until 2020 to conform to the policy approved in 2018. Fines can be applied for non-compliance but there are exceptions for the use of plastic bags for sanitary reasons, such as with raw food.
"This seems like a good measure because you avoid continuing to pollute the streets and the community," said Victoria Gomez, a 42-year-old secretary in downtown Panama City.
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