Inaplas: Circular Economy Is The Key To Plastic Waste Control

JAKARTA - The implementation of a circular economy or transition to a circular plastic system, where all plastics are reused, recycled, and managed responsibly, is considered the key to overcome the problem of plastic waste.

"Transition to the circular economy will reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions," said Deputy Chairperson of the Indonesian Olefin, Aromatics and Plastic Industry Association (Inaplas) Edi Rivai in a statement in Jakarta, quoted from Antara, Tuesday, November 26.

In addition, he continued, it also increases resource efficiency, encourages economic development and creates jobs, especially in countries with underdeveloped waste and recycling management infrastructure.

Therefore, according to Edi, who is Indonesia's representative at the Global Plastics Alliance, building circularity in the entire plastic life cycle, starting from design, recycling, to managing the end of the responsible life, and developing a waste management system that fits the needs must be the main basis for international agreements to end plastic pollution.

Earlier, ahead of the final round of negotiations scheduled for international treaties to end plastic pollution, the World Plastics Council (WPC) and members of the Global Plastics Alliance (GPA) called on the state governments to agree on an ambitious and implementable agreement, which significantly increases waste management and recycling.

In the fifth session of the Intergovernmental Negotiation Committee (INC5), which began on Monday (25/11/2024) in Busan, South Korea, negotiators from the respective governments are expected to reach an agreement on a number of important topics, including models that will be used by binding international law instruments (Internationally Legally Binding Instrument/ILBI) to help countries cope with plastic waste.

According to Edi, the most effective way to achieve the purpose of the agreement, while maintaining the benefits of plastic for the community is to make plastic waste a commodity that has real value.

Plastics allow the use of wind and solar power, improve building and transportation efficiency, maintain food security, improve infrastructure, and support modern health services.

"Therefore, this agreement must recognize that plastic is needed to achieve sustainable development goals and deal with climate change," he said.

This agreement, he added, must also admit that unmanaged waste is the main cause of pollution, as well as prioritizing the provision of adequate waste management for about 2.7 billion people who have not received it.

WPC chairman Benny Mermans said each country faces very different challenges and requires a different solution, a global unified approach to policies and regulations will not work.

"Therefore, this agreement must provide flexibility for each country and region to achieve the purpose of the agreement in the most appropriate way for them," he said.

This agreement must require countries to develop national action plans so that they can implement solutions that are tailored to their conditions effectively.

For example, the mandatory recycling content target for sectors that use plastic at the national level will increase the value of plastic waste as a circular raw material by increasing demand for circular plastic raw materials.

The plan must have general elements and reporting requirements that ensure the country's accountability in tracking progress and creating demand signals to encourage investment in collection, sorting, and recycling.

Benny added that the World Plastics Council, over the past 18 months has united various stakeholders to discuss the best way to overcome one of today's biggest challenges, namely ending plastic pollution.