Towards a Circular Plastics Economy: Policy Solutions for Closing the Loop on Plastic

Abstract

Over the past 50 years, plastic has emerged as one of the most ubiquitous materials in modern society. In the form of packaging, plastic has provided us with immense convenience and utility, particularly with regards to food preservation, safety, and environmental impacts, compared to alternative materials. Against this backdrop, the combination of single-use plastic packaging and low recycling rates has led to a global plastic pollution crisis, yielding more intense public and governmental scrutiny towards plastics than ever before. Simultaneously, China’s National Sword policy, which imposes strict contamination limits on imported recyclables and outright bans many popular plastic packaging types, has catalyzed immense disruption within the recycling ecosystem. Collectively, these disruptions have sharply reduced the availability of viable end markets for recycled plastic, ultimately leaving recyclers and governments around the world with nowhere to sell their plastic recyclables. Given this confluence of events, plastic packaging stakeholders face a critical juncture in determining plastic’s role within our society. Specifically, how can we sustainably produce, consume and dispose of plastic packaging in a manner that allows us to realize the material’s vital value? In other words, how can the plastic packaging industry, policymakers, NGOs, and other involved stakeholders design and advocate for a more circular plastics economy? This research seeks to answer this question based on the hypothesis that the use of public policies that facilitate the recovery and recyclability of plastics worldwide is critical for achieving the systemic changes required for the transition to a circular economy. As such, this research examines a wide array of policy tools around the world that have been implemented to reduce plastic pollution and increase plastic recycling rates, with the goal of providing the packaging industry and other stakeholders with insights and recommendations regarding the advantages and disadvantages of different policy options.