Another Country Joins the “No More Single-Use Plastics” Club!

A region within Nigeria has just banned single-use plastics and styrofoam to reduce the rampant pollution problem.

“Following the menace which single-use plastics, especially non-biodegradable Styrofoam, are causing on the environment, the Lagos State government […] is hereby announcing a ban on the usage and distribution of Styrofoam and other single-use plastics in the State with immediate effect,” says Tokunbo Wahab, the state of Lagos’s environment and water resources commissioner.

The ban will take place in Nigeria’s Lagos state, which includes the most populous city in the country with 15.4 million inhabitants. The ban is immediate, but enforcement and implementation might take a bit longer to come about. Some of the most affected under the ban will be food delivery and takeaway services, including markets and street vendors. Though causing concern for some merchants, these food containers build up in massive quantities in the region’s drains and roadsides. Climate advocates agree that should the ban be effectively executed; it can ultimately reduce substantial CO2 emissions in the Lagos region.