The Spanish economy is one of the last in Europe to tackle the “single use”plastic bag problem.It is estimated that the average Spaniard uses almost 300 plastic bags a year.This amounts to a whopping 10 billion a year.These bags will not decompose ,at least they might in hundreds of years and in the meantime they cause massive problems in the environment.

Many Spanish supermarkets are now attempting to encourage customers to use other forms of transport for their shopping.They are providing paper bags or jute bags which can be used for years and even then they will decompose.Some supermarkets are charging for the bags as a way of discouraging wasteful use of them.

Reduction in the number of bags used can only be beneficial but even so the number which would continue to be used would be highly detrimental to the environment.The only real solution is to ban then totally and the Spanish government is working towards this by 2015.