In a move that will affect voyagers visiting the island, Aruba has banned the use of plastic bags. According to the publication Caribbean Journal, the ban goes into effect on Jan. 1, 2017. According to the Caribbean Compass online magazine, this move means Aruba joins Antigua & Barbuda and Puerto Rico in banning single-use plastic bags.
In a related eco-item, Caribbean Compass reports that plastic drink bottles topped the list of items recovered from beaches in 16 Caribbean countries as part of the Ocean Conservancy’s 2015 International Coastal Cleanup. According to the Ocean Conservancy’s report “Trash Free Seas,” roughly 36,000 people participated in cleaning up about 400,000 pounds of solid waste from beaches and waterways. More than 28 percent of that was plastic drink bottles.
A good reminder to voyagers to make sure they don’t add to the problem by properly disposing of plastic bottles when voyaging.
