Polythene bags have been preferred for packaging purposes because they are light in weight, cheap and resistant to degradation. Despite the benefits, poor disposal of polythene causes degradation and pollution of soil, water, land and air resources leading to health problems and climate change. Furthermore, pol-ythene kills the wild game, livestock and aquatic organisms. These problems have led to the introduction of legislation banning polythene bags. Reports of availability of these polythene bags and emergence of poor quality alternatives present negative outcome of the environmental legislations. Therefore, this research study was aimed at studying the influence of alternative eco-friendly bags on compliance with the environmental legislation that banned its use, with a view to improving its adoption in Rongai. The descriptive research design was used in the study. A sample size of 259 respondents was selected using proportionate stratified random sampling from a target population of 18,377 households and 580 traders while purposively selected 6 key informants. Instruments used included Piloted questionnaires (0.74 Cronbach’s alpha level) and focus group discussions. Data analysis was done using SPSS version 20. Percentages were used in descriptive statistic while Chi-square at 5% level of significance (∝ = 0.05) and correlation was used in the inferential statistic. Findings indicated that 50% of respondents used the outlawed propylene bags, the majority significantly agreed (p < 0.0001). It is suggested that there is need for promotion of eco-friendly bags.
Cite this paper
Koros, V. K. , Kitetu, J. J. and Kebenei, S. J. (2019). Influence of Polythene Bag Alternatives on Compliance to Environmental Legislation on Polythene Bag Ban in Rongai Sub-County, Nakuru County, Kenya. Open Access Library Journal, 6, e5848. doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.4236/oalib.1105848.
EU (2015) Directive (EU) 2015/720 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 29 April 2015 Amending Directive 94/62/EC as Regards Reducing the Consumption of Lightweight Plastic Carrier Bags (Text with EEA Relevance)—Publications Office of the EU. https://publications.europa.eu/en/publication-detail/-/ publication/58d93aee-f3bc-11e4-a3bf-01aa75ed71a1/ language-en
Kühn, S., Rebolledo, E.L.B. and van Franeker, J.A. (2015) Deleterious Effects of Litter on Marine Life. In: Marine Anthropogenic Litter, Springer, Berlin, 75-116. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-16510-3_4
Ro, K. (2017) The Kenya Gazette 2334. The Environmental Management and Co-Ordination Act, (Cap. 389). https://www.nema.go.ke/images/Docs/Awarness%20 Materials/Gazette_legal_Notice_on_carrier_bags.pdf
Grover, A., et al. (2015) Polythene and Environment. Environmental Sciences: An International Journal of Environmental Physiology and Toxicology, 5, 1091-1105. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/280096478_Po lythene_and_Environment
Muriithi, N. (2017) Why Kenya Must Get Rid of Plastic Bags. https://www.businessdailyafrica.com/analysis/Why-Keny a-must-plastic-bags/539548-4024780-f95yqxz/index.html
Ahmed, A., Baiyeri, K.P. and Echezona, B.C. (2013) Effect of Coloured Polyethylene Mulch and Harvesting Stage on Growth and Yield of Industrial Sugarcane in Nigeria. African Journal of Biotechnology, 12, 1078-1083.
Ayinla, A.I. and Eleke, P. (2010) Effect of Low Density Polyethylene (LDP) Waste on Physical Characteristics of Agricultural Land. Journal of Research in National Development, 8. https://doi.org/10.4314/jorind.v8i2.66869
Browne, M.A., Niven, S.J., Galloway, T.S., Rowland, S.J. and Thompson, R.C. (2013) Microplastic Moves Pollutants and Additives to Worms, Reducing Functions Linked to Health and Bio-diversity. Current Biology, 23, 2388-2392. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cub.2013.10.012 https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S09 60982213012530
Reisser, J., Shaw, J., Hallegraeff, G., Proietti, M., Barnes, D.K.A., Thums, M., Pattiaratchi, C., et al. (2014) Millimeter-Sized Marine Plastics: A New Pelagic Habitat for Microorganisms and Invertebrates. PLoS ONE, 9, e100289. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0100289
Joseph, N., Kumar, A., Majgi, S.M., Kumar, G.S. and Prahalad, R.B.Y. (2016) Usage of Plastic Bags and Health Hazards: A Study to Assess Awareness Level and Perception about Legislation among a Small Population of Mangalore City. Journal of Clinical and Diagnostic Research, 10, LM01-LM04. https://doi.org/10.7860/JCDR/2016/16245.7529
Murathe, E. (2017) 11 Charged over Plastic Bags Use. Business Daily. https://www.businessdailyafrica.com/news/11-charged -over-possession-of-plastic-bags/539546-4135002-12dje20z/index.html
Synthia, I.J. and Kabir, S. (2014) Ban on Plastic Bags and the Emergence of New Varieties: A Study of Awareness on Shopping Bags and the Possibility of Behavior Change towards Eco-Friendly Consumption. Proceedings of the Australian Academy of Business and Social Sciences Conference, Dhaka, 5-9.
Gogtay, N.J. and Thatte, U.M. (2017) Statistics for Researcher: Principles of Correlation Analysis. Journal of the Association of Physicians of India, 65, 78-80.
