Photo/Illutration A convenience store chain begins offering wooden spoons at some outlets. (The Asahi Shimbun)

A new law that took effect April 1 to slash plastic waste and promote recycling should serve as an opportunity for consumers to reflect on ways they can reduce their use of plastic products to protect resources and the environment.

A centerpiece of the legislation is a provision requiring businesses that provide large amounts of single-use plastic products, such as convenience stores, supermarkets, hotels and laundries, to cut back on such supplies.

The requirement covers 12 types of products, including forks, straws, toothbrushes, safety razors and hangers.

Two years ago, Japan introduced a mandatory fee for each plastic shopping bag.

While shopping bags account for only several percent of the nation’s overall plastic waste, the measure has led to a notable change in consumer behavior.

For example, the number of shoppers who carry their own bags around has increased.

The new law does not impose such a flat fee on single-use plastic products and gives businesses a number of options to choose from.

For example, businesses can ask customers whether they want to use plastic products; offer reward points to those who decline; review materials they use or reduce plastic weight; and switch to products that can be reused.

Many businesses are said to planning to shun the fee option due to concerns about adverse effects on sales.

It is also understandable that some businesses, such as smaller supermarkets, are reluctant to change the materials used due to added costs.

Hopefully, however, other alternatives, such as giving customers an option not to use plastic products and rewarding customers for not receiving them, will lead to a steady decline in the consumption of single-use plastic products.

We urge consumers to think more carefully whether they really need plastic products being offered.

The Environment Ministry needs to monitor specific measures taken by businesses and assess their effectiveness. It should offer encouragement to do more to reduce plastic waste by sharing examples of instructive efforts with businesses.

We suggest that the ministry consider adopting stronger measures, such as imposing a mandatory fee, if the new law turns out to be less effective than it aims to be.

It is also vital to promote separate collection and recycling of plastic waste.

Plastic bottles and packages have already been subject to legally required separate collection of plastic waste.

The new law requires local governments to “make efforts” to collect many other kinds of plastic waste for recycling.

While the central government will subsidize part of the costs for the new requirement, local governments will be obliged to shoulder the rest of the additional costs.

It will also be a big challenge to ensure that consumers understand and follow new rules for separate collection.

The central and local administrations need to make concerted efforts to secure the cooperation of the public.

In this regard, policy efforts ought to be stepped up to slash plastic waste and promote recycling to ensure the amount of waste collected for incineration, categorized as “energy recovery,” which contributes to climate change, will be reduced.

A survey by the Cabinet Office found many people do not see the need to use small containers for different dishes in bento lunch boxes or use cushioning materials in packages for products purchased online and delivered to homes.

The government has set targets for reducing single-use plastic products by 25 percent by 2030 and reuse or recycle 60 percent of plastic packages. Achieving the targets requires developing a specific and viable progress schedule.

--The Asahi Shimbun, April 2

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