It’s the end of days for plastic grocery bags and Styrofoam takeout containers in Canada.

Environment Minister Steven Guilbeault published draft regulations Tuesday outlining how Canada will ban the manufacture, sale and import of these items, along with plastic cutlery, stir sticks, straws and six-pack rings, by the end of next year.

The regulations outline how each of the products is to be defined — plastics bags for example are those made of plastic film which will break or tear if used to carry 10 kilograms back and forth 53 times.

Cutlery includes forks, knives, spoons, sporks and chopsticks that will start to melt if immersed in hot but not boiling water.

There are some exceptions for single-use plastic flexible straws to accommodate people with disabilities and those needing them for medical purposes.

The public can provide written comment on the draft regulations until March 5, and the timing of the final regulations will depend on how much feedback is received. World Trade Organization rules mean Canada has to allow a six-month phase-in period once the final regulations are published, but Guilbeault said he expects them to take effect by the end of 2022.

Written by The Canadian Press