The East Caribbean nation of Dominica prides itself on its beauty.

It's nestled in blue waters, is filled with spectacular rainforests and draws tourists with the nickname of “Nature Island.” To protect its greatest assets, the small island nation recently took an ambitious step.

By January 2019, Dominica, home to 70,000 people, plans to fully ban all common plastic and styrofoam single-use food containers.

In an announcement detailing the decision last month, the government explained that the decision builds on an earlier initiative to restrict imports of non-biodegradable containers, an attempt to cut off their flow into the stores and restaurants that distribute them.

“Dominica prides itself as the ‘Nature Isle,’” the prime minister, Roosevelt Skerrit, said in a statement. “We must in