Kampala — RESIDENTS of Kampala who burn plastic bags should brace themselves for tougher times after NEMA warned that burning plastic bags pollute the environment.

Dr. Aryamanya Mugisha head of NEMA says plastic bags release toxic gases that cause nervous disorders, cancer and terminal illnesses. Dioxins are also blamed for cutting on sperm count.

Mugisha says the dioxins persist in the environment and contaminate the food chain. "It is becoming a common practice to burn plastic bags," Mugisha says. This endangers the health of humans and the environment.

In most parts of Kampala and its suburbs, it is common to come across people burning heaps of plastic bags.

Institutions such as Makerere University get rid of litter including plastic waste through combustion at dustbins scattered across the campus.

The common waste comprise of mineral water bottles and carrier bags.

A source said the only option to deal with plastic bags. "We have no other way of getting rid of the plastic bags," the source said. She wondered what should be done with the bags when there is inadequate infrastructure for disposing plastic bags.

Other women use plastic bags to light charcoal stoves. However, American scientists warn that continous exposure to such dangerous emissions is a possible cause of cancer.