Abu Dhabi aims to ban single-use plastic bags by 2021

ABU DHABI — Abu Dhabi announced on Tuesday it aims to ban the use of single-use plastic bags in the United Arab Emirates capital by 2021.

The Environment Agency — Abu Dhabi (EAD) said a new policy "will make Abu Dhabi free of single-use plastic bags by 2021", in a statement carried by the official Emirati news agency, WAM.

The policy "aims to... eliminate the use of avoidable single-use plastic and non-plastic materials by 2021".

The agency said it aims for legislation that will limit the use of plastic materials in Abu Dhabi, adding it will introduce fees on plastic materials that have available alternatives.

A report submitted to the World Government Summit held in February 2019 in Dubai said the UAE consumes 11 billion plastic bags annually, the agency said.

Abu Dhabi is the capital and wealthiest of the seven emirates that make up the UAE.