UK to ban sale of wet wipes containing plastic

Following legislation soon to be introduced in Parliament that would ban the sale of plastic-containing wet wipes in the UK, the British government announced April 22 as Earth Day across the world.

Britain’s Environment Secretary Steve Barclay said the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) will introduce legislation for England before Parliament’s summer recess in July.

The devolved regions of Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales are expected to amend their own legislation to make it a UK-wide ban as part of an aligned approach at the end of the year.

“Wet wipes containing plastic are polluting our waterways and microplastics are entering the environment,” Mr Barclay said.

“Following our successful single-use carrier bag charge and ban on microbeads in personal care products, DEFRA will introduce legislation before the summer holidays to crack down on this unnecessary source of pollution… Plastic-free wet wipes readily available ‘, and many retailers have already stopped selling wet wipes containing plastic.’

The minister said it was part of a “step change” needed to protect the country’s waterways from pollution.

He said, “The ban builds on actions already taken to protect our waterways and hold water companies accountable – including accelerating investment, imposing water company fines and quadrupling the number of inspections of water company sites Is.”

According to DEFRA’s beach litter monitoring data for 2015-2020, an average of 20 wet wipes were found per 100 meters of beach surveyed across the UK.

Once in the water environment, plastic-containing wet wipes can accumulate biological and chemical pollutants, increasing the risk of harm to animals and humans who encounter them.

Banning them is expected to reduce plastic and microplastic pollution and reduce the amount of microplastics entering wastewater treatment sites when improperly flushed.

The ban has been imposed following a public consultation on the issue, which showed overwhelming support for such a move.

The legislation will be introduced through secondary legislation under the UK Environmental Protection Act 1990 (EPA), with 95% of respondents agreeing or strongly agreeing with the proposals.

An 18-month transition period will begin once the legislation is passed to give businesses time to prepare. After consultation with industry, the ban will not include the manufacture of these products, in line with other recent single-use plastic bans.

Chief customer and commercial officer Steve Egger said: “As part of our long-term commitment to working with suppliers and customers on sustainability and reducing plastic use, Boots last year removed all plastic packaging from stores and online sales. Removed the wipes.” Boots is one of the largest retailers of such products in the UK.

Mr Egger said, “We are pleased to see the government taking action now as banning all wet wipes containing plastic would have a much bigger impact than if retailers took action alone.”

The government said it would continue to encourage manufacturers to move to a position where all their wet wipes are plastic free.

Some exemptions will be included to ensure that plastic-containing wet wipes remain available where there is no viable alternative – such as for medical disinfection purposes. DEFRA said it would regularly review the need for these exemptions.

Earth Day is an annual event held on April 22 to demonstrate support for environmental protection.