Indonesia Retail Association, a lobby group for the country’s retailers, said on Sunday it will start to charge customers IDR200 (USD0.01) per plastic bags, pledging support to government-led initiative to limit plastic bag usage among customers.
The ubiquitous plastic bags are free of charge in Indonesia, donning the hands of convenience store customers and high end mall shoppers alike. Most of the bags end up in landfill or washed away by streams, choking the wildlife and clogging cities’ drainage system.
A new policy from the Environment Ministry, to take effect from 21 Feb., will charge customers in major cities across Indonesia for plastic bags.