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In Brief: Afghan government warns of plastic bag risks

by IRIN | IRIN
Tuesday, 11 January 2011 08:00 GMT

* Any views expressed in this article are those of the author and not of Thomson Reuters Foundation.

KABUL, 11 January 2011 (IRIN) - The Afghan Health Ministry has advised people to avoid using plastic bags, particularly for food, saying they carry health and environmental risks. “A group of experts has been tasked with studying the harm caused by plastic bags,” said a 10 January Health Ministry statement. Children’s feeding appliances made of polycarbonate, and plastic bags containing compounds such as Bisphinol-A (BPA), damage human health and the environment, Faizullah Kakar, a public health adviser to President Hamid Karzai, said. BPA is a controversial compound which has been promoted by some manufacturers [ http://www.factsaboutbpa.org/ ] but the UN World Health Organization warns of possible adverse affects on human health. [ http://www.who.int/foodsafety/chem/chemicals/bisphenol/en/index.html ] Plastic bags are completely banned, restricted or discouraged in a number of countries. ad/cb © IRIN. All rights reserved. More humanitarian news and analysis: http://www.IRINnews.org

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