Marine Plastics

Marine plastics are a growing threat to the environment and marine biodiversity as 335 million tonnes of plastics was produced in 2016 with approximately three percent leaking into the oceans every year. In this regard, one of the most illustrative and well-known examples of this global issue is the Great Pacific Garbage Patch (GPGP), a zone of accumulated marine debris, composed of more than 1.8 trillion plastic pieces, and situated in the international waters between California and Hawaii. In addition, microplastics (plastic debris of no more than 5mm in diameter) are increasingly recognized as a problem. It was estimated that 1.5 million tons of primary microplastics are released into the environment per year and this might increase in the next decades if no action is taken.

In the process of acknowledging the seriousness of this issue, states around the globe have enacted regulations to address this issue by targeting the different stages of the plastic life-cycle, namely: production, trade, transport, retail, consumer use and end-of-life.

The MARPLASTICCs project, executed by the IUCN Global Marine and Polar Programme (GMPP) in collaboration with the IUCN Environmental Law Centre (ELC), aims at providing an in-depth analysis of these regulatory tools to identify gaps and facilitate the exchange of best practices. These analyses will be cross-linked with the on-going scientific and economic research on plastic leakage.

The project’s medium-term outcome aims to enable governments, industry and society in the regions of Eastern and Southern Africa as well as Asia to be equipped with knowledge, capacity, policy options and plans of action to contain and reduce marine plastic pollution.

The ELC is currently conducting, in close collaboration with specialised national experts and in consultation with key national stakeholders, the necessary analyses of current policies and regulatory frameworks at the regional and national levels, and is assessing the impacts and effectiveness of legal/policy instruments and tools. The targeted countries are Kenya, Mozambique, South Africa, Thailand and Viet Nam.

Furthermore, scoping studies have been elaborated to analyse the legal, institutional and policy frameworks governing marine plastics in above-mentioned five target countries. Some of the key findings include:

• In Kenya, efforts made by the Government which include recent bans on use, manufacture and importation of plastics carrier bags and flat bags have achieved some notable success. However, the Government Notice lacks clarity on the scope of the ban. Although there is no Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) framework in place, there is a voluntary effort from the industry sector to establish take-back mechanisms;

• In Mozambique, production, import and retail marketing of plastic bags with a thickness of less than 30 micrometres is prohibited. An environmental tax on packaging is also under development but has not yet been approved. In addition, there is no overarching policy to address the issue that would permit to establish a clear roadmap or strategy. Furthermore, there is a lack of appropriate and harmonized legislation as well as a lack of institutional coordination;

• In South Africa, plastic bags below 24 microns are prohibited and a plastic bag levy has been established but both of these measures have unfortunately proven to be relatively ineffective and are being reviewed. Furthermore, the existing legal framework focuses on the production and post-consumer level of the plastic life-cycle through an elaborated EPR mechanism. In this instance, the Minister of Environment, Forestry and Fisheries can require an industry to develop an Industry Waste Management Plan, alternatively, the Minister can impose specific EPR measures on industry which may include both upstream and downstream measures.

• In Thailand, the government has recently taken action to address the issue of plastic pollution with the creation of a sub-committee on plastic waste management. The sub-committee addresses the problem at different leverage points from awareness-raising to waste management mechanisms. However, it is challenged by an overall lack of coordination and a fragmented legal framework.

• In Viet Nam, the import of plastic waste is a major issue that has not been adequately addressed by the government. The informal sector also plays a crucial role in the plastic waste treatment by creating a waste segregation system but is not recognized by the administration. A number of initiatives aim at developing a legal framework on EPR in the country.

Following a consultation with key institutional, industry, and civil society stakeholders to prioritize legal and policy tools for addressing plastic pollution in the country, at least one legal tool was identified in each target country as the most appropriate to tackle marine plastic pollution. As a result, In-Depth Policy Assessments (4 completed and 1 underway) were conducted to analyse the current state and future scenarios for each selected tool. The assessments contribute to measuring the impact of regulatory mechanisms in place and in development for tackling marine plastic pollution, and focus on the following topics: Kenya- Covers the instrumental, institutional, and behavioural levels and examines the informal sector around Extended Producer Responsibility, with focus on the Regulations developed by the Government.

• South Africa: Covers the instrumental, institutional, and behavioural levels and examines the informal sector around Extended Producer Responsibility, with focus on the Waste Act, and specific provisions and Regulations developed by the Government.

• Thailand: Covers the instrumental, institutional, and behavioural levels and examines the informal sector around 4 different tools, including: Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR), bans or limitations on single use plastics / plastic bags, limitations on international imports of plastic scraps, and coordination and sharing of information.

• Viet Nam: Covers the instrumental, institutional, and behavioural around Extended Producer Responsibility under current regulations and for the newly published regulations to take effect on January 2022.

Photo: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOOA) U.S.A.