China's two-year-old ban on ultra-thin plastic bags has arrived at the "roof of the world".

Southwest China's Tibet Autonomous Region said Friday it would ban the manufacture, sale and use of flimsy plastic bags under 0.025 mm thick before the end of this year to curb "white pollution" in the plateau region.

In a circular to local governments Friday, the regional government ordered all prefectures and counties to replace ultra-thin plastic bags with cloth shopping bags. It also requested a campaign to clear white pollution at Tibet's tourist attractions and along highways and rail roads.

Ultra-thin plastic bags were banned in Tibet's capital Lhasa two years ago, when China joined a growing list of countries to break the plastic bag addiction, but many remote Tibetan areas are yet to implement the ban.

Ultra-thin bags were the main target of the crackdown because they were typically used once and then thrown away, littering streets, fields and streams and creating "white pollution".

Shopkeepers were also be banned from handing out free plastic carrier bags except for fresh and cooked foods. Those breaking the law face fines and could have their goods confiscated.