Environment Protection (Restriction on manufacturing, importation, distribution and sale of Plastic Bags) Regulations 2017 (S.I. No. 37 of 2017)

[3,0th June 2017] Supplement to Official Gazette S.I. 37 of2017 ENVIRONMENT PROTECTION ACT, 2016 (Act 18 of2()1.6) E11vironment Protection. (Restricthm on manufacturing, importation, distribution and sale of Plastic Bags) Regulations 2017 In exercise of the power conferred by section 80 read with section 4( d) and section 41 ( c) .of the Environment Protection Act, 2016 the Minister of Environment, Energy an.d Climate, Changehereby'makes the following Regulations-. 1. These Regulations may be cited as the Environment Protection (Restriction on manufacturing, importation, distribution and sale of Plastic Bags) Regulations, 2017 and shall come into force on 1 stJuly, 2017. 207 Citation and commencement 2. In these Regulations, unless the context otherwise rnterpretation requires- , "AS" means Australian Standard; "ASTM" means the American Society for Testing and Materials; "Biodegradable bag" means a bag that can be biologically broken down naturally by bacteria and other living organisms into natural elements in a normal environment leaving no toxicity in the soil; "certificate of conformity" means a document, tag, label, or nameplate, provided to the buyer that attests the product compliance with standard; "EN" means the European Standard; 208 Prohibited plastic bags Issuance of p'ermits Supplement to Official Gazette [30th June 2017] "exempted plastic bag" means a plastic bag specifiec! in the First Schedule; "ISO" International Organisation for Standardisation; ,, ' "Ministry" means the Ministry responsible for Environment; "plastic" means material which contains as an essentiaI ingredient a high polymer such as polyethylene terephthalate, high density polyethylene, Vinyl, low density polyethylene, polypropylene, polystyrene resins, multi-materiais like acrylonitrile butadiene styrene, polyphenylene oxide, polycarbonate, Polybutylene terephthalate; "plastic bag" means a bag made of plastic; "Seychelles Bureau of Stand.ards" means the Bureau established under section 3 of the Seychelles Bureau ofStandardAct, 2014; "standards" means the applicable standards specified in the Second Schedule or its equivalent; "validation" means confirmation. through the provision of objective evidence, that the specified requirements have been fulfilled, 3. The manufacturing, importation, dis.tribution and sale of plastic bags, for use within the Republic of Seychelles, which does not fall into the category of exempted plastic bag as specified in the First Schedule are hereby prohibited. 4.(1) The Ministry responsible for Finance and Trade, subject to the approval of the Ministry may issue import permits for [30th June 20.17] ' Supplement to Official Gazette (a) exempted plastic bags; or (b) biodegradable bags (2) Subject to subregulation (1 )(b), upon submitting an import pennit application, the importer s.hall submit a certificate of conformity to which. shall stipulate the standard to which itis compliant to. (3) Subject to subregulatiori (2) an application to import shall not be granted if the certificate of conformity is not validated by the Seychelles Bureau of Standards. 5. Any person w ha contravenes these Regulations shall be guilty of an offence and is liable an canvictionto a fine not exceeding SCR20,()00 or ta imprisonment far a term not exceeding one year, orto both such fine and imprisonment. 6. Where a consignment of plastic bag has been imparted in breach of these regulations, the consignment shall be dealt within accordance withSection 246(1 )(b) or 247( 1) of the Customs MaI1agementAct2011. 7. Th.e EnvironmeutProtection (Restriction on Plastic Bags) Regulations 2008 is hereby repealed. IflRS'lf SCHEDULE (see Regulation 3) . EXE~.1PJIQN LIST. Any plastic bag which i~- . ( !!) a bag deslgneld to be used for the disposal of waste; (b) a zip-locked (re-sealable) bag for pharmaceutical dispensing or a.ny other medical use; 209 .. Offence 'Imports in breach of regulation Repeal of S.I. 39 of2008 210 Supplernent to Official Gazette [30th June 2017] ( c) a bag designed for agricultural purposes; ( d) a bag used for the purpose of sampling or analysis; ( e) a transparent re-sealeable. bag with security' tamper used by a passenger to contain liquids, aerosols or gels at an airport or on board of an aircraft or carried by a transfer passenger; (f) a bag carried by a passenger disembarking from an aircraft or a ship for the purpose of carrying personal belongings; '· (g) a bag manufactured for export; (h) a bag used for perishables which has been portioned, pre packed and sold in frozen condition such as meat, poultry, fish, seafood, repacked whole or portioned vegetables and fruits (as clients need to see their quality); (i) a bag that constitutes or forms an integral part of th.e packaging in which goods are sealed prior to sale on the local market or for export such as ham, sausages .and processed meat, meat products and other vacuumed packed products; G) a bag used for repacked foods in granular forms such as pulses, sugar, rice, beans etc; and (k) a bag used for packaging snacks and products such as bread, banana chips, ice cakes etc. to preserve their freshness, preyent rancidity and mould growth and prevent contamination during storage and transportation. [30th June 2017] Supplement to Official Gazette . TvneofBaas SECOND SCHEDULE STANDARDS . Annlicable Standards Biode=dable Ba2s AS4736--2006 ASTMD6400 . EN 13432 TSO 14855 MADE this 30th day of June, 2017. DIDIER DOGLEY MINISTRY OF ENVIRONMENT, ENERGY AND CLIMATE CHANGE 211