Latest editorial
Kenya to charge plastic bag carriers £30,000
Kenyan authorities have taken the toughest action yet on plastic pollution — slapping a minimum fine of two million shillings (£15,000) for the “use, manufacture or import” of carrier bags.
The minimum fine can be replaced with a year behind bars, while maximum penalties are fines of four million shillings (about £30,000) or four years in jail.
The median annual wage in Kenya is just 80,000 shillings (around £600).
Nairobi has defended the harsh penalties by pointing to the way non-biodegradable bags are blocking sewers and choking waterways.
Similar stories
One of the major criticisms of China’s breakneck development in recent decades has been the impact on nature — returning after 15 years away, BEN CHACKO assessed whether the government’s recent turn to environmentalism has yielded results
![A star fish near a beach [Pic: Jakob Owens]](https://dev.morningstaronline.co.uk/sites/default/files/styles/desktop/public/2025-05/jakob-owens-n5wwck8ES4w-unsplash.jpg.webp?itok=eU6ipETC)
