Brussels, 05/03/2015 (Agence Europe) - Further progress was made on Tuesday 3 March towards adopting legislation to reduce consumption of single-use light plastic bags which are polluting EU seas and rivers. The Council formally adopted its common position on the draft directive amending Directive 94/62/EC on packaging and packaging waste. The decision was no more than a formality and was taken without debate (see EUROPE 11220).
Under the terms of the common position, which formalises the compromise reached between the Parliament and the Council allowing second reading agreement, member states will be able to choose between requiring payment for these bags by 2018 or reducing average annual consumption to 90 bags per inhabitant by the end of 2019 (compared with 176 currently) and to 40 by the end of 2025. (Aminata Niang)