Guising itself as the paramount solution for the underlying plastic waste problem, recycling might not even begin to address the root causes of the issue, especially when only nine percent of the annual plastic waste is getting recycled. Painting a grim picture, the landfills of the world are hosting almost 85 percent of the global plastic packaging waste. Where the entire South Asia generated about 26.7 million tonnes of plastic waste, American households generated over 50 million tonnes of plastic waste in 2021, making the United States of America the world’s largest plastics polluter. India, in particular, generated 3.4 million tonnes of plastic waste in 2020 and managed to recycle only 30 percent of it, whereas the USA recycled only about 5 percent of its plastic waste in 2021.

What’s it about plastics?

Being made up of fossil fuels, plastic itself is a major contributor to global warming, so much so that had it been a country, the entire life cycle of plastic would have been the fifth largest contributor to greenhouse gas emissions. Although it starts out on land, it ends up in the marine environment with around 51 trillion plastic bits floating at the surface level itself causing severe injuries and deaths to the marine population.

The fact that plastics are a petroleum product is a major reason behind the inefficiency of plastic waste recycling. The subsidies enjoyed by the fossil fuel industry ultimately render it cheaper for virgin plastics to be manufactured, as compared to the recycling process since it's an expensive and complex process. Adding to that, the segregation of plastics is an onerous task since there are seven different types of plastics with only Polyethylene Terephthalate (PET) being the one with a strong recyclables’ market. Apart from PET and High-Density Polyethylene (HDPE), the other five are rarely recycled since the cost of doing so is much higher than the manufacturing of virgin plastic.

Case of single use plastic

Another stinging revelation is that the bans on the use of plastic bags in Asia and Africa are consequently causing a shortage in the quantity of raw materials required for recycled plastic to be manufactured. Furthermore, as reported by S&P Global, a New Tork based market analytics organisation, the slowdown in the construction industry in Asia is reducing the demand for recycled plastic.

Permanently banning single-use plastic that can’t easily be recycled is a highly effective solution, as suggested by seven out of 10 people who took part in a 2022 Ipsos survey conducted by the World Wildlife Federation (WWF) and the Plastic Free Foundation. Another solution presented in this regard, by Sander DeFruyt, the lead of the New Plastics Economy initiative of the Ellen MacArthur Foundation, is gradual phasing out of petroleum subsidies while simultaneously ensuring subsidies over the recycling process by the companies generating plastic waste under their extended producer responsibility (EPR).

Breaking free from plastic

But the situation is still hopeful with over 200 countries having pledged to eradicate plastic pollution in the resumed fifth United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA 5.2) held in Nairobi, Kenya on March 2, 2022. This was therefore called “The most important environmental deal since the Paris accord. The work starts now! Huge congratulations to Member States.â€_x009d_ by Inger Anderson, Executive Director of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP). In an effort to create a plastic pollution free world, with Rwanda at the forefront, the representatives of these countries agreed to frame an internationally binding treaty by 2024, that will lay the groundwork for an Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee (INC). With the oceans being its priority, the treaty would help develop a legally binding agreement that will require countries to adopt national objectives and strategies aimed at reducing, recycling, and managing plastic waste.

The legal instrument thus created shall provide appropriate alternatives solutions for managing plastics throughout their lifecycle. The design and specifications of reusable and recyclable materials will be covered in this document, along with the significance of improved global collaboration to ease access to technology, capacity building, and scientific and technical cooperation. Participating counties will be asked to create, carry out, and update their respective national action plans that take into account country-driven initiatives, based on the goals outlined in the legal agreement of the instrument’s objectives. Along with taking constructive steps towards fulfilling their national action plans, it will be expected of nations to promote both regional and global collaboration.

India, while agreeing to the formation of the INC in its draft resolution, also emphasised the urgency of tackling single-use plastics pollution via collaborative international voluntary actions. Once the INC presents the instrument, it shall then be endorsed by UNEP through a diplomatic conference. The objective of this treaty will be to establish a comprehensive and consistent framework for managing plastic waste on a global scale, where fragmentary efforts towards banning single-use plastics might find a consonance.