China to ban disposable non-degradable plastic use on flights

BEIJING - China will ban the use of disposable plastic packaging bags, tableware and straws on domestic flights starting next year, the Civil Aviation Administration of China said Wednesday.

Airports with an annual throughput of at least 2 million passengers will also stop providing such products next year, and the ban will be extended to all airports and international passenger flights in 2023, the administration said.

The ban was part of a five-year plan released by the administration to control plastic pollution. By 2025, the consumption of disposable non-degradable plastic in the civil aviation industry will decline sharply from the 2020 level, according to the plan.

Airlines in the country have already started the green transition, with some companies replacing disposable plastic tableware with recyclable ones and piloting on-board garbage sorting.