Dubai"s busiest airport pledges to ban the use of single-use plastic There were 150,000 plastic straws prevented from being used in one day DUBAI: Single-use plastic is set to be banned from retail outlets operating in Dubai International Airport from January 2020 as it continues in its efforts to slash the amount of plastic waste it produces. The airport already recycles 43,000 tons of glass, paper, and other types of waste every year, according to a press statement released by Dubai Airports announcing its latest pledge to help save the environment. In one day the pledge prevented 150,000 plastic straws from being used – that’s the equivalent of 30,000 meters of plastic. Dubai Airports Executive Vice President, Eugene Barry said the company was working with retail and food companies operating in the airport to meet the pledge. “At an airport that hosts some 90 million people per year, we believe we can make a tangible difference by eliminating single-use plastics in consumer spaces,” Barry said. In the last six months Dubai Airports disposed of 16 tons of single-use plastic bottles and caps the statement added. It is not the first time a UAE-based aviation company has taken environment friendly steps. In April Etihad Airways marked Earth Day by operating its first long-haul flight without single-use plastic.