What Should Never Have Happened Was the Regulation Itself of “Disposable Products”

Fortunately, the Ministry of Environment has withdrawn its single-use product regulation policy. The government had planned to ban the use of disposable items in cafés and restaurants starting November 24, but decided to ease its single-use product management measures in consideration of the difficulties facing small business owners and the inconvenience to consumers. The guidance period for the ban on plastic straws will be extended indefinitely, and the policy banning paper cups will be scrapped.

It was the right decision to change the policy direction in a way that can reduce inconvenience for consumers and small business owners. If the effect of protecting the environment had been clear, people might have been willing to accept some inconvenience and higher costs. The problem, however, was that under the previous single-use product regulations, all market participants were inconvenienced, yet the environment was not ultimately protected. For that reason, a complete policy overhaul was unavoidable.

In particular, paper straws caused tremendous inconvenience for consumers. Even after brief use, they became soggy and limp, forcing people to use multiple straws, and they often altered the taste of drinks.

Some users even complained that paper straws tasted like school handouts or cardboard delivery boxes. What further enraged consumers was the news that paper straws are not environmentally friendly at all, since they emit 5.5 times more carbon dioxide than plastic straws.

This is an opportunity to reconsider environmental regulations that have little to do with actual environmental protection. People often assume that disposable products are harmful to the environment. However, it is important to recognize that mugs, tumblers, and eco-bags used in place of disposable products are not necessarily eco-friendly either.

First, when reusable cups are used instead of disposable cups, the only immediate difference is that there is no visible trash right in front of us. Yet the water and detergent used to wash mugs also cause environmental pollution. Detergents contaminate water quality, and dishwashers that use electricity increase carbon emissions and waste energy.

The same is true of eco-bags and tumblers. Cotton eco-bags are said to help the environment only if they are used at least 131 times compared with plastic bags, but in general they are used fewer than 50 times. Tumblers as well use more plastic than disposable containers, and are therefore being identified as another major culprit of environmental pollution. Washing tumblers and eco-bags also entails environmental pollution.

Moreover, reusable items such as mugs raise serious hygiene concerns. We have already experienced the coronavirus, and aversion to items shared by multiple people is higher than ever. It is difficult to force consumers to give up hygiene for the sake of environmental protection. As consumers are being forced to accept regulatory policies with little actual environmental benefit, their resistance is only growing.

Small business owners are also welcoming the Ministry of Environment’s withdrawal of the regulations, as it eases their financial burden and reduces customer complaints. Café owners had to invest labor and money to wash mugs. They also faced the burden of paper straws, which cost more than two to four times as much as plastic straws. On top of that, they had to deal with complaints from consumers who preferred hygienic disposable products.

Some media outlets’ distorted view of environmental policy is also a problem. In a recent editorial, the Chosun Ilbo politically interpreted the government’s withdrawal of single-use product regulations, saying, “There are things that should never be done, no matter how much it is for election purposes.” In other words, it misconstrued the easing of single-use product regulations as a general-election measure, as though it were equivalent to the Democratic Party handing out money for electoral gain in the past.

Even the media has treated environmental protection as a kind of unquestioned superstition without scientific evidence, and as a result, consumer harm in this area has continued. The problem was the regulation banning disposable products from the start, not the withdrawal of an ineffective policy.

Everyone wants to protect the environment. It is desirable to implement environmental regulations only after closely examining whether they will actually produce results that protect the environment. Taking into account the full process of a product’s production, consumption, and disposal, it is better to implement policies that genuinely protect the environment while also improving consumer welfare and reducing the burden on businesses.

We should not repeat misguided policies that use paper straws instead of plastic ones and foster the illusion that we are “saving the planet.”

Eun-kyung Kwak

Secretary General, Center for Free Enterprise (CFE)

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Original title: 해서는 안 되는 것은 ‘일회용품 ’규제‘ 그 자체였다

Author: Eun-kyung Kwak

Date: 2023-11-22

Source: https://www.cfe.org/bbs/bbsDetail.php?cid=press&idx=26145