Worldwide, Regulators are Taking on New Approaches to Scale Down and Reduce Packaging Waste.
Sustainability Regulations
Some of the most advanced and developed countries and regions are taking significant measures to implement sustainability regulations. Others continue to operate with limited or no regulations. In the United States, 16 states have enacted state wide regulations to address packaging waste. They focus on single-use plastics, shopping bags, and increasing recycling targets. Europe has made considerable progress in sustainability, with the “New EU Directive for Single-Use Plastics” announced in May 2019 aiming to decrease the leakage of the ten most commonly found single-use plastic products on European beaches. Certain countries, such as France, Germany, and the United Kingdom, have gone beyond the robust recycling regulations of the European Union, implementing Extended Producer Responsibilities (EPRs) with more aggressive targets, fees for non-recyclable packaging, and other related legislation.
Impacts
In Asia, Thailand has implemented a nationwide ban on single-use plastic bags at major stores. India is focused on increasing awareness campaigns and improving waste collection. China has banned imports of plastic waste and introduced legislation. This is to reduce packaging waste, single-use plastics, increase recycling, and promote the reuse of used plastics. In Latin America, there has been a significant increase in awareness around sustainability in recent years, resulting in the approval or proposal of many local and federal bills to regulate plastic waste. For example, Chile is banning plastic bags for business, and Mexico City is banning single-use plastics.
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