The Ministry of Nature Protection has unveiled a draft law prohibiting the free provision of plastic bags starting from July 1, 2019.

A number of supermarkets have been selling plastic bags to customers for several years now but there is no law regulating the sphere for now.

Under the new draft law, special taxes will be imposed for the sale of polyethylene bags from january 2020 which is aimed at a sharp reduction in use. The sale of plastic bags will be banned in 2022.

The Ministry argues that the widespread use of polyethylene bags in trade and service sectors has led to the emergence of environmental problems.

Plastic packages thrown into the environment are preserved for a long time and do not undergo biological decomposition, resulting in major pollution.

The average period of use of polyethylene bags is 10-15 minutes, while their biodegradation takes more than 100-400 years.