By Bae Ji-sook
Staff Reporter
Giving away free plastic bags at small supermarkets will be banned, the Ministry of Environment said Tuesday.
According to the ministry, stores or industrial sites comprising more than 33 square meters should not provide clients with free plastic bags. Currently, if needed customers buy plastic bags for 50 won at convenience stores or large markets, but small size grocery stores were exempt from the rule.
Also, the government will increase the fee for waste management on disposable diapers, chewing gum, cigarettes and other items, gradually from 2008 to 2012. It aims to impose the actual cost for the management procedure by then. The fee is expected to increase 10-fold.