How Kenya's plastic ban victory became a health crisis

Eight years ago, Kenya made global headlines with one of the world's strictest plastic bag bans. The move was bold, unprecedented in its severity, and sent shockwaves through the manufacturing and retail sectors. Yet today, as you walk through any Kenyan town or city, plastic carrier bags remain a stubborn fixture of daily life – a paradox that tells a complex story of environmental ambition, partial success, and ongoing challenges.

It was August 28, 2017, when the National Environment Management Authority (Nema) implemented what many considered the most stringent plastic bag regulation on the continent. Unlike previous half-hearted attempts, this ban came with teeth: fines of up to Sh4 million or four years imprisonment for violations. The message was clear – Kenya meant business.

The move came after three previous unsuccessful attempts to regulate plastic waste, each falling short of meaningful change. But the 2017 ban was different, crafted with the kind of penalties that would make manufacturers, importers, and users think twice before handling the ubiquitous carriers that had become synonymous with environmental degradation.

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Officials from the Ministry of Environment harboured ambitious hopes: reduce plastic waste in landfills, clean up the broader environment, and position Kenya as a leader in environmental stewardship. For a time, their optimism seemed justified. Kenyans embraced the change, diligently avoiding plastic bags and seeking alternatives. The sight of enforcement officers confiscating illegal bags became commonplace, and businesses scrambled to find eco-friendly packaging solutions.

But eight years later, the reality presents a more nuanced picture. Whilst the ban has achieved significant successes in reducing plastic waste, plastic carrier bags have made an undeniable comeback. They're visible in markets, shops, and streets – often used for packaging food and household products before being discarded in dustbins or, worse still, thrown into open spaces.

The familiar crackle of plastic bags can be heard in any Kenyan marketplace today, despite the ongoing efforts to eliminate single-use plastics. These discarded bags have found their way back to roadsides, clogging drainage systems and creating the very environmental problems the ban was designed to prevent.

Lake Victoria crisis

Nowhere is this ongoing battle more evident than around Lake Victoria, where environmentalists have raised urgent concerns about plastic waste pervading every aspect of life. The contamination extends beyond mere aesthetics – it's infiltrating water sources, food chains, and ultimately, human bodies.

The lake, shared by Kenya, Uganda, and Tanzania, has become an unwitting repository for plastic waste runoff. As this debris breaks down, it transforms into micro-plastics that fish inadvertently consume, creating a contamination cycle that eventually reaches human dinner tables.

Willis Omullo, a climate change ambassador and chairman of Aluora Makare, an environmental community-based organisation, has witnessed this transformation first-hand. "Fish in the lake consume plastic, which are in the form of micro-fibres," he explains.

The mechanics of this contamination are deceptively simple yet profoundly troubling. "Fish can easily consume the plastic when they appear like planktons," Omullo continues. What makes this particularly insidious is how natural the process appears – fish following their instincts, unaware they're ingesting pollutants that will travel up the food chain.

For Omullo, this represents a serious health concern that demands immediate government attention. "We end up eating the fish, meaning the plastic cycle ends up on our tables. It explains why we have health complications which are triggered by plastic pollution."

The irony is stark: as the government enthusiastically promotes the blue economy, focusing on fisheries and transport development around Lake Victoria, the very foundation of this economic vision – clean, healthy waters – continues to deteriorate.

"Whilst the government is keen on opening up the blue economy with a focus on promoting fisheries and transport in Lake Victoria, addressing pollution in the lake should be a priority," Omullo insists. His warning carries particular urgency: "Failure to lower pollution levels will lead to extinction of some fish species."

The biodiversity implications are already becoming apparent. "The population of some fish species is on the decline because of the harm they are facing in the lake. We expect to witness more biodiversity loss due to plastic pollution," he adds, painting a picture of an ecosystem under siege.

Management challenge

At the heart of Kenya's ongoing plastic problem lies a fundamental challenge: waste management. Despite the ban's intentions, the infrastructure and systems needed to support effective waste disposal and recycling remain inadequate.

Omullo identifies one of the most basic yet crucial missing elements: waste segregation. "Many Kenyans are unaware of the importance of waste segregation or how to properly separate waste," he notes. The solution sounds straightforward – organic materials, plastic, metal, and other substances should be placed in different containers – but implementation requires a coordinated approach that has yet to materialise.

"This requires enactment of policies, civic education, and investment in different waste receptacles in different places," he explains. His vision extends beyond mere collection to embrace what he calls the three Rs: "We need to make good use of the three Rs – reuse, refuse, and recycle. What is killing us is a linear economy whereas we can create a circular economy when it comes to proper waste management."

The current system, he suggests, is fundamentally flawed in its approach – treating waste as an endpoint rather than a resource. This linear thinking has contributed to the persistence of plastic pollution despite the ban's implementation.

Dangerous disposal methods

Even more concerning than poor waste management are the actively harmful disposal methods still prevalent across Kenya. Conservationists in Homa Bay have documented widespread use of burning and burying plastic waste – practices that may seem like solutions but actually compound environmental and health hazards.

Hellen Ouma from Initiative for Awareness and Development, an environmental group, explains the long-term implications: "Plastic takes years to decompose, polluting land and water indefinitely." Her organisation advocates for a fundamental shift in approach, calling for the redirection of plastic from landfills and dumpsites into recycling and upcycling initiatives.

The solution, according to her, requires investment in people as much as infrastructure. "County governments should fund waste-to-wealth programs targeting unemployed youth and women," she suggests, recognising the potential for environmental solutions to address unemployment simultaneously.

Education remains crucial to any long-term solution. "Schools and communities need continuous awareness campaigns," Hellen emphasises, acknowledging that behavioural change must accompany policy implementation.

Her organisation has called on Homa Bay County government to establish centralised plastic dumping sites, seeing this as a pathway to enhanced job creation among youth. The current system creates barriers for would-be recyclers who "struggle to source plastics due to scattered, mixed waste," she explains. "Centralised sites would streamline collection."

The vision is practical and ambitious: "We want the dumping sites to be centralised. This will enable our young people to recycle them, leading to job creation."

Individual responsibility

Not all environmentalists place the blame solely on inadequate infrastructure or government policy. Godwin Ayata, vice chairperson of Community Green Organics Network, believes Kenyans themselves bear significant responsibility for improper waste management.

His frustration is evident as he describes daily observations: "A lot of people are not concerned about how they dispose of waste. Take for example plastic water bottles. Many Kenyans throw them away in public places."

Ayata's call for individual accountability challenges the common assumption that environmental protection is solely a government responsibility. "Some people believe it is the work of the government to protect the environment. It is, however, an individual's responsibility to ensure that the environment is clean."

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