Guinea’s Plastic Ban Conflicts With Efforts to Provide Safe Drinking Water

Guinea has reversed its ban on single-use plastics just three weeks after enforcement began, bowing to widespread public opposition. The government approved the measure two years ago, but implementation did not start until September 20.

Residents condemned the timing, arguing that the policy removed their main source of safe drinking water without offering a replacement. “How can you cut off the population’s primary source of safe drinking water without providing an alternative?” one resident told reporters. “You can’t suddenly go green and leave people thirsty.”

With the ban lifted, factories that make single-use plastic water sachets have restarted production. They are also expected to work over the coming months on “environmentally friendly solutions.”