gación y Adaptación , que establece nuestras ambiciones a la hora de afrontar la realidad del Cambio Climático y de cumplir nuestras responsabilidades como nación . Por supuesto , tendrá que actualizarse periódicamente a medida que avancemos y se desarrollen las tecnologías , pero , en mi opinión , es una buena base para avanzar ».
SINGLE-USE PLASTIC BAN IN FULL EFFECT
The Department of the Environment and Climate Change has issued a statement reminding the public that various single-use plastic items have been banned in Gibraltar .
New legislation came into effect on the 1st of August 2021 , with several plastic items now banned from importation into Gibraltar in any quantity .
The plastic items no longer permitted are cotton bud sticks ; cutlery ; plates ; bowls ; toothpicks ; straws ; beverage stirrers ; balloon sticks ; food containers made from expanded polystyrene ; beverage containers made from expanded polystyrene , inclu-
ding their caps and lids ; and cups made of expanded polystyrene , including their caps and lids .
The government also reminded the public and local businesses that bags made wholly or partly from plastic and of a thickness of less than 100 microns are also banned from importation and will be confiscated on discovery .
Under the current legislation , items referred to as “ made of plastic ” include ‘ bio-based plastic ’, so-called ‘ biodegradable plastic ’, ‘ oxo-degradable plastic ’ and ‘ polymer ’ based items .
The statement issued by the Department of the Environment said : “ It is important to remember that both our terrestrial and marine environments are not exclusively for human use . We share these spaces with a multitude of wildlife . Experts estimate that up to a million birds and 100,000 marine fauna are killed each year as a result of plastic debris including plastic bags .
“ Leatherback , green and Loggerhead turtles can be found in the Mediterranean and the Black Sea . Leatherback turtles have seen their population numbers drop by 95 % due to plastic inges-
18 OTWO 29 / DECEMBER 2021