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Despite the 2022 ban on single-use plastics and existing regulations like the Plastic Waste Management Rules 2016 and Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR), weak enforcement allows plastic pollution to persist.
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Read all about: What is Plastic Pollution? l Plastic Regulations in India | WHAT IS PLASTICDWEEP? |
They are plastic items designed to be used only once before they are thrown away or recycled. These products are made from fossil fuel-based chemicals and are known for their convenience and low cost, leading to their widespread adoption in modern consumer culture.
Common examples of SUPs
Environmental hazards
Persistent pollution: SUPs litter lands, clog waterways, and contaminate soil and water, as they take hundreds of years to decompose.
Microplastic contamination: SUPs break down into smaller microplastics that pervade every ecosystem, from remote mountains to oceans.
Harm to wildlife: Animals often ingest or get entangled in plastic debris, leading to internal injuries, starvation, or death. This affects marine, freshwater, and land animals.
Air pollution: Production and incineration of plastics release greenhouse gases and toxic chemicals like dioxins, which contribute to climate change and harm local communities.
Health hazards
Chemical leaching: Harmful additives like phthalates leach from plastic into food and drinks.
Microplastic ingestion and inhalation: Humans ingest microplastics through contaminated food, water, and air. These particles have been found in the blood, lungs, and placentas.
Endocrine disruption: Chemicals like Bisphenol A (BPA) are endocrine disruptors that interfere with hormonal systems, causing reproductive issues, metabolic disorders, and certain cancers.
Organ damage: Ingested and inhaled microplastics cause inflammation and oxidative stress, leading to cell damage in the digestive, respiratory, and cardiovascular systems.
Bioaccumulation of toxins: Microplastics absorb and carry other pollutants and pathogens, delivering them into human tissue and enhancing their toxicity.
2022 Ban: Prohibits 19 low-utility, high-littering SUP items like cutlery, thermocol for decoration, and straws. Carry bags under 120 microns are also banned.
Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR): Since 2022, producers and importers must meet mandatory targets for managing their plastic packaging waste.
2025 Traceability: Starting July 1, 2025, plastic packaging requires a barcode or QR code to enhance accountability and tracking.
New EPR Mandates (April 2025): New rules introduce mandatory percentages of recycled plastic content for all packaging categories and reuse targets for rigid plastic packaging.
Challenges in Tackling Single-Use Plastic
Economic and business challenges
High cost of alternatives: Eco-friendly options are more expensive than plastic, burdening small businesses and deterring price-sensitive consumers.
Inconvenience of alternatives: SUPs are valued for their low cost and convenience. Alternatives are seen as less convenient, especially in fast-paced retail and food sectors.
Livelihood impacts: Plastic bans threaten the jobs of those in manufacturing and the informal waste collection sectors without adequate transition support.
Implementation and enforcement issues
Weak enforcement: Inspections and penalties are inconsistent, with smaller penalties acting as insufficient deterrents.
Informal sector reliance: Much of plastic recycling relies on an unregulated informal sector, leading to inefficient and unaccounted practices.
Data and governance gaps: Fragmented governance across different levels (national, state, and local) leads to inconsistent application and poor monitoring of plastic waste policies.
Waste management and recycling hurdles
Inadequate infrastructure: Lack of proper infrastructure for waste collection, segregation, and recycling, particularly in rural areas.
Complex plastic types: The wide variety of plastics, including multi-layered packaging, complicates sorting and recycling processes.
Low-value materials: Some plastics, like thin films and certain packaging, have low or negative market value, discouraging their collection and recycling.
Policy and Governance
Strengthen enforcement with technology: Move beyond relying solely on fines. Use data analytics and AI for surveillance to track illegal SUP sales and disposal.
Mandate full lifecycle transparency: Require mandatory annual plastic footprint audits for all companies, disclosing usage, waste generation, and recycling rates.
Target complex plastics: Revise EPR frameworks to effectively manage non-recyclable multi-layered packaging (MLP) by assigning higher fees to harder-to-recycle materials.
Standardize alternatives: Develop and enforce clear certification standards for biodegradable and compostable plastics to prevent fraud and ensure proper labeling.
Encourage innovation
Invest in alternatives: Promote research and innovation for eco-friendly substitutes. Example; Indian startups like Zerocircle (seaweed packaging) and Go Do Good (agro-waste packaging) show the potential of innovation.
Promote circular business models: Encourage reuse and refill systems. Example; In Trichy, Tamil Nadu, a campaign promoting reusable cloth bags saved 2,200 kg of SUP in one major farmer's market in a year.
Scale recycling technology: Invest in advanced infrastructure like Material Recovery Facilities (MRFs) with AI sorting to improve recycling rates.
Incentivize green business: Offer financial incentives like tax breaks for companies using recycled content or designing for recyclability.
Infrastructure and waste management
Formalize the informal sector: Integrate informal waste pickers into the formal waste management system with legal recognition and fair wages, to leverages their expertise and improves collection efficiency.
Empower cities: Dedicated budgets under programs like the Swachh Bharat Mission for urban and rural plastic waste management infrastructure, including waste processing units and material recovery facilities.
Despite the 2022 ban, single-use plastics persist due to weak enforcement, costly alternatives, and consumer habits, demanding stricter governance, innovation, better waste infrastructure, and citizen participation for a sustainable, plastic-free future.
Source: THE HINDU
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PRACTICE QUESTION Q. The ban on single-use plastics in India is a significant, yet insufficient step to tackle the nation's plastic pollution crisis. Critically analyze. 250 words |
India implemented a nationwide ban on specific single-use plastic items starting on July 1, 2022. This ban, enacted by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC), targeted items with low utility and high littering potential.
No, the ban specifically targets single-use plastics with low utility and high littering potential. Items like mineral water bottles and multi-layered packaging are not banned but are subject to Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) regulations.
EPR holds producers, importers, and brand owners responsible for the entire lifecycle of their plastic packaging, including collection, recycling, and disposal. Guidelines were issued in February 2022 to promote a circular economy for plastic waste.
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