The economics of plastic bag legislation in South Africa

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dc.contributor.authorHasson, R
dc.contributor.authorLeiman, A
dc.contributor.authorVisser, M M C
dc.date.accessioned2018-10-02T08:30:14Z
dc.date.available2018-10-02T08:30:14Z
dc.date.issued2007
dc.date.updated2016-01-14T08:50:00Z
dc.description.abstractIn May 2003 South Africa introduced legislation intended to decrease plastic bag litter. It combined standards and price-based economic tools in an attempt to reduce the public's demand for plastic bags. This paper analyses the short term effects of the legislation on bag demand. It also provides a background to these regulations and a theoretical overview. The assessment uses bag consumption data from four retailers, each representing a different consumer market. These are analysed, and respective price elasticities calculated. The results suggest that plastic bag demand is relatively price inelastic and imply that instruments utilising price alone, would have limited efficacy. However, the combination of standards and pricing successfully curbed plastic bag use in the short run. Further analysis suggests that the effectiveness of the legislation may be declining over time.
dc.identifierhttp://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1813-6982.2007.00101.x
dc.identifier.apacitationHasson, R., Leiman, A., & Visser, M. M. C. (2007). The economics of plastic bag legislation in South Africa. <i>South African Journal of Economics</i>, http://hdl.handle.net/11427/28901en_ZA
dc.identifier.chicagocitationHasson, R, A Leiman, and M M C Visser "The economics of plastic bag legislation in South Africa." <i>South African Journal of Economics</i> (2007) http://hdl.handle.net/11427/28901en_ZA
dc.identifier.citationHasson, R., Leiman, A., & Visser, M. (2007). THE ECONOMICS OF PLASTIC BAG LEGISLATION IN SOUTH AFRICA1. South African Journal of Economics, 75(1), 66-83.
dc.identifier.ris TY - AU - Hasson, R AU - Leiman, A AU - Visser, M M C AB - In May 2003 South Africa introduced legislation intended to decrease plastic bag litter. It combined standards and price-based economic tools in an attempt to reduce the public's demand for plastic bags. This paper analyses the short term effects of the legislation on bag demand. It also provides a background to these regulations and a theoretical overview. The assessment uses bag consumption data from four retailers, each representing a different consumer market. These are analysed, and respective price elasticities calculated. The results suggest that plastic bag demand is relatively price inelastic and imply that instruments utilising price alone, would have limited efficacy. However, the combination of standards and pricing successfully curbed plastic bag use in the short run. Further analysis suggests that the effectiveness of the legislation may be declining over time. DA - 2007 DB - OpenUCT DP - University of Cape Town J1 - South African Journal of Economics LK - https://open.uct.ac.za PB - University of Cape Town PY - 2007 T1 - The economics of plastic bag legislation in South Africa TI - The economics of plastic bag legislation in South Africa UR - http://hdl.handle.net/11427/28901 ER - en_ZA
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/11427/28901
dc.identifier.vancouvercitationHasson R, Leiman A, Visser MMC. The economics of plastic bag legislation in South Africa. South African Journal of Economics. 2007; http://hdl.handle.net/11427/28901.en_ZA
dc.language.isoeng
dc.publisher.departmentFCO1 Students
dc.publisher.facultyFaculty of Commerce
dc.publisher.institutionUniversity of Cape Town
dc.sourceSouth African Journal of Economics
dc.source.urihttp://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1813-6982.2007.00101.x/full
dc.subject.otherstandards
dc.subject.othermarket instruments
dc.subject.otherpolicy
dc.subject.otherplastic
dc.subject.otherpackets
dc.subject.otherelasticity
dc.titleThe economics of plastic bag legislation in South Africa
dc.typeJournal Article
uct.type.filetype
uct.type.filetypeText
uct.type.filetypeImage
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