France has various programmes aimed at reducing the use of plastic, and the proposed bill would go even further. A French politician has called for small plastic water bottles to be banned, describing the packaging as “complete nonsense” and “environmental folly”.

Pierre Cazeneuve (Pierre Cazeneuve), a member of President Emmanuel Macron's (Emmanuel Macron) party “Renaissance” (Renaissance), has tabled a bill that could put an end to the use of water bottles smaller than 50 cl. Expanding on his “colourful” remark, Cazeneuve said that small bottles in the 33, 25 and 17 cl sizes “contain 20-25 grams of plastic for just three or four sips of water”. For the time being, he has not included larger bottles in the potential proposal to ban certain types of water packaging.

Will the proposed water bottle ban be written into French law?

For the proposed bill to become law, it will have to “pass through several legislative sieves”, and to achieve that the proposal will have to be debated in parliament and win the backing of a majority of MPs. At present that looks unlikely, as the current government is not only deeply divided but also lacks a majority in parliament. Even so, if the proposal were to be adopted, many French citizens would most likely support it.

A recent survey carried out by OpinionWay on behalf of the charities Zero Waste France and No Plastic in My Sea found that roughly two thirds of the country's population would support such a ban.

What is the current situation with plastic in France?

At least 13 billion plastic bottles are produced in France every year. Worse still, a considerable proportion of them are not recycled. A large share ends up in the oceans, causing enormous damage to the environment. Even so, France already has several pieces of legislation in force covering single-use plastics.

The so-called “anti-waste law” is gradually banning the use of single-use plastic items, including cutlery, drinking straws and takeaway containers. Restrictions have also been set on plastic packaging for retailers.

The law does not apply to plastic water bottles. France has many schemes encouraging people to stop buying new plastic bottles and to choose refillable bottles instead.

Many French cities have drinking water fountains where bottles can be refilled. In Paris, if you spot a sign with the “L'eau de Paris” logo in the window of a bar or café, you can refill your bottle with tap water free of charge.

Bottled water has long been a contentious issue in France

Earlier this year, an investigation by the newspaper Le Monde and the broadcaster Radio France found that almost one in three mineral water brands in the country is purified using a treatment method intended for tap water only. The revelation came after Nestlé admitted that the water for its main brands, including Perrier and Vittel, is treated with ultraviolet light and activated carbon filters. This runs counter to French law, which is based on a European Union directive and prohibits the disinfection of mineral water, which must be of naturally high quality before bottling.