Department Of Materials Science and Engineering (DMSE)

Indian Institute of Technology Delhi

❖ Plastic Waste :-

• Causes ,
• Sources,
• Affects
• Alternatives and
• Management Guidelines &
Procedures

Ashutosh Kumar
M.tech (Polymer Science & Technology)
IIT Delhi
Plastic Waste
 ❖ Plastic waste
❑ Plastic waste is the accumulation of plastic objects in the
Earth's environment that adversely affects the wildlife
habitat and humans.

➢ Plastics that act as pollutants can be categorized into

micro-, meso-, or macro debris, based on size.

➢ Plastic waste is regarded to be more an aesthetic

nuisance than a hazard, since the material is biologically
quite inert.

➢ The main disadvantage of plastic is the shear amount of

time they take to decompose--the average plastics takes
500 years.
 ❖ Sources of Plastic waste
➢ Municipal sources: which includes residential, markets, commercial establishments, hotels, hospitals etc.,

➢ Distribution & Industrial sources: which include food & chemical industries, packaging films etc.,

➢ Other sources: which include automotive, agricultural wastes, fishing & shipping, construction debris etc.,
 ❖ Land litter
❑ Plastic that either isn’t collected where waste management facilities are lacking, or plastic that is simply
dropped or disposed of on streets or in the environment can be termed as land litter.

➢ These items can be of both aesthetic and environmental nuisance when on land.
➢ These items can also be transported by wind and rain into drainage networks or rivers that then transported
to sea.
 ❖ Microbeads

• Micro beads are tiny pieces of plastic that are purposefully

manufactured. They are usually used in various personal care
and cosmetic products like facial cleansers and cosmetics. Their
use in medicine as vectors for drugs was also reported.

• For example, micro plastic "scrubbers", used in exfoliating hand

cleansers and facial scrubs, have replaced traditionally used
natural ingredients, including ground almonds, oatmeal, and
pumice.

• Many of these micro bead particles are too small to be filtered

out by wastewater plants and end up flowing.
 ❖ Inland water litter

➢ Plastic litter directly into the rivers,

streams and drains can be a source of
plastic pollution.

➢ Sometimes, improper management of

collected plastic waste can also find its way
into these inland water bodies through
storm water drainage.

➢ All these can cause of clogging of drains

and can be breading spaces for mosquitos
causing human health hazard.
❖ Industrial leakage

➢ Poor standards in industrial processes are

responsible for some plastic moving into the
environment, either when products containing
plastic aren’t roduction and/or transportation of
products.

➢ For example, thousands of tiny plastic pellets

used to produce plastic products, known as
nurdles or medisposed of properly, or escaping
during the prmaid’s tears, are washed up on
beaches every year (Greenpeace, 2018).
 ❖ Marine litter
➢ Marine litter, is human-created waste that has
been deliberately or accidentally released into a
sea or ocean during shipping, fishing or
aquacultures.

➢ Holidaymakers visiting beaches and disposing of

bottles and food packaging on the sand also
directly contributes to plastic getting into the
ocean.

➢ Floating oceanic debris tends to accumulate at

the centre of gyres and on coastlines, frequently
washing aground, when it is known as beach
litter or tide wrack.
How much plastic is in the ocean?

YT video link:- https://youtu.be/WW7UXmafNow

 ❖ Secondary sources

• Secondary plastics viz., micro plastics are small

pieces of plastic derived from the breakdown of
larger plastic debris, both at sea and on land.

• A culmination of physical, biological, chemo, and

photo degradation, over a period of time can
reduce the structural integrity of large sized plastic
debris to a size that is eventually undetectable to
the naked eye.

• This process of breaking down of large plastics into

much smaller pieces is known as fragmentation.
Microplastics are microscopic plastic particles that are smaller than 5mm in size.
There are two types:
primary microplastics are tiny, such as microbeads found in personal care items.

Secondary microplastics, on the other hand, begin as bigger plastic products such as plastic bags but degrade
over time into microplastic particles. The tiniest fragments cannot be seen with the naked eye.
 ❖ Origin of Plastics in the Marine Environment

➢ The release of plastics into the

environment is a result of
inappropriate waste management,
improper human behavior, or
incidental pollution.

➢ The portion of plastic litter that does

not reach land fills will roam the
earth’s surface, travelling by wind until
it reaches the rivers, and eventually
the sea.

➢ In highly populated areas, land-based

sources dominate the input of plastic
waste into the marine environment;
ship-generated debris is the major
source of marine debris found on
remote shores.
❖Land-Based Sources
➢ Municipal Land fills Located on the
Coast Transport of Waste by Rivers
from Landfills, or Any Other Sources
of Debris Along River- and Waterway
Systems, discharge of Untreated
Sewage and Storm Water Industrial
Facilities Tourism

❖Ocean-Based Sources
➢ Nearly 5.6 million tons of marine debris every
year is estimated to come from ocean-based
sources, which is 88% of the total marine
debris input. Daily, about five million items of
solid marine debris are estimated to be
thrown overboard or lost from ships
 ❖The main ocean-based sources of such waste are as follows:

❑ Merchant Ships, Ferries, and Cruise liners: These ships are sources for marine debris in the form of household
waste, sewage, cargo, and cargo hold waste (wiring straps, covering material and cargo residues), packaging material
(plastic sheets, boxes), engine-room waste (oil or detergent containers ), and discarded medical and sanitary
equipment.
❑ Naval and Research Vessels: Naval and research vessels produce much of the same garbage as do the merchant
ships, ferries, and cruise liners, but military vessels may also deliberately dump military items to dispose of them.

❑ Pleasure Craft: From these craft, primarily household waste, sewage waste, oil containers, and recreational fishing gear
(angling line and weights) are dumped from ignorance, negligence, or lack of reception facilities in local harbors.

❑ Fishing Vessels: In areas far away from urban development, discarded fishing gear is responsible for 50–90% of the
total marine debris. There are several reasons as to why fishing gear can become marine litter
➢ Fishing gear is abandoned
➢ Fishing gear is discarded
➢ Fishing gear is lost
➢ Containers are lost
 ❖ Coastal Pollution
❑ A study by MIT Technology Review has ranked 66
coastal countries and territories on their progress
and commitment toward protecting ocean
sustainability.

❑ This infographic focuses on one particular aspect of

the ranking - coastal debris pollution.

❑ As the chart shows, the degree to which countries

around the world performed in terms of a country's
recycling efforts (solid waste recycled as a share of
waste management) and beach litter density (litter
count per km2) varies greatly.

❑ Taiwan, Germany and Australia ranked the highest

on the scale, while the United States was also rated
among the best performers.

❑ As a region, South America received the lowest

scores when looked at collectively, although at the
very bottom of the index are Ghana, Cameroon,
Angola and Nigeria.
❑ How often does the same old sad
story repeat itself? You set out for
a nice walk along a seemingly
pristine beach but once you're
out on the sand, it's clogged with
plastic bottles and other garbage.

❑ A grim report estimates that

there are over 5.25 trillion
pieces of plastic weighing over
250,000 tons floating on the
world's oceans.

❑ All of that pollution has had a

serious impact on the
environment with evidence even
suggesting that marine
organisms as far as 10km
beneath the surface have
ingested plastic fragments
❑ The following infographic uses data from NOAA and Woods Hole Sea Grant to show just how
long it takes for a range of other plastic items to bio-degrade in a marine environment.
 ❖ GYRES:- HOW DOES PLASTIC GET IN THE SEA ?

• There are 5 major swirling ocean

garbage patches called gyres.

• Garbage patches generally

accumulate far from any country’s
coastline, and it is nearly impossible
to track the origin of marine debris.

• The tiny plastic particles that make

up most of the patches are also
very difficult and expensive to
detect and remove.

1. North Atlantic Gyre

2. South Atlantic Gyre
3. Indian Ocean Gyre
4. North Pacific Gyre
5. South Pacific Gyre
6. Arctic Ocean
 ❖Garbage Patches

➢ Ocean gyres circle large areas of stationary, calm water. Debris drifts into these areas and, due to the
region’s lack of movement, can accumulate for years. These regions are called garbage patches.

➢ The Indian Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, and North Pacific Ocean all have significant garbage patches. The
garbage patch in the North Pacific Ocean is sometimes called the Pacific trash vortex or the Great Pacific
Garbage Patch.

➢ Garbage patches are created slowly. Marine debris makes its way into the Great Pacific Garbage Patch,
for instance, from currents flowing along the west coast of North America and the east coast of Asia.
Some of the debris is also dumped from ocean vessels.

The circular motion of the gyre draws in the debris, mostly small particles of plastic. Eventually, the
debris makes its way to the center of the gyre, where it becomes trapped and breaks down into a kind
of plastic soup.
 ❖ Great Pacific Garbage Patch

• The Great Pacific

Garbage Patch
(GPGP) is the largest
of the five offshore
plastic accumulation
zones in the world’s
oceans.

• It is located halfway
between Hawaii and
California. The Great
Pacific Garbage Patch is
• The GPGP covers an
the largest
estimated
accumulation surface area
of ocean
of 1.6 in
plastic million square
the world and
kilometers.
is located between
Hawaii and California
• An area twice the size
of Texas or three times
the size of France.
❖ The Insane True Scale of the Great Pacific Garbage Patch

YT Video Link :- https://youtu.be/3RLrTCVmLCc

MOVEMENT OF THE OCEAN GYRE
❖ Garbage Patch Visualization Experiment

Video Link - https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/4375#media_group_18514

 Impact of Plastics on the Marine Environment
Entanglement:- Entanglement can
cause death by drowning,suffocation,
strangulation, or starvation.

Very often, birds, small whale

species, and seals drown in ghost
nets, lose their ability to catch food,
or cannot avoid predators because of
their entanglement.
Ingestion:- The ingestion of
plastics primarily occurs when it
is mistaken for food, but can
also occur from incidental
intake.

In most cases, however,

fragments become trapped
inside the stomach, throat, or
digestive tract and cause
damage (e.g., sharp objects) or
a false sense of fullness, which
will result in starvation.
TURTLES :- All seven species of endangered sea turtle ingest or are entangled by plastic.
❑ More than 50% of sea turtles eat plastic.
❑ 50-80% of all dead sea turtles found have plastic inside them.
❑ The Two Oceans Aquarium's green sea turtle Bob is one of the few
❑ sea turtles lucky enough to survive eating plastic - he was rescued
❑ after being stranded.

FISH:- ❑ 114 species of marine fish are known to regularly be entangled in or ingest plastic.
❑ At least a million fish are killed this way each year.

BIRDS:- ❑ Two-thirds of all seabird species are affected, representing

56% of all seabird species.
❑ Millions of birds are killed each year.
❑ 98% of albatrosses have ingested plastic, and 40% of their
chicks
❑ died when they are fed this by their parents.

CORALS:- ❑ Several coral species have been observed starving as their digestive systems have been blocked by micro
plastic or their photosynthetic zooxanthellae were killed by being shaded by plastic.
❖ LAND MAMMALS:
❑ Half of all camels that die on the Arabian Peninsula each year are killed by ingesting plastic
bags, which form heavy calcareous lumps in their stomachs.
❑ An Indian elephant was killed by eating plastic shopping bags in India in 2018.
❑ In 2018, reindeer in Norway were killed by abandoned fishing nets.
❑ Eight African elephants died in Zimbabwe in 2016 after eating plastic bread bags.

Unlike humans, wild animals do not have the ability to discern plastic from "digestible" materials. Simply put, if it looks
like food, or smells like food, or tastes like food or behaves like food, then it must be food.
❑ Filter-feeding animals, like whale sharks and baleen whales, can ingest plastic by accident.
❑ Plastic can release chemicals that smell like food, triggering species such as anchovies to find it.
❑ Jellyfish-eating species, such as ocean sunfish and sea turtles, mistake plastic bags and balloon ribbons for jelly
medusae.
❑ Grazing and scavenging animals, such as cows, seagulls, dogs and camels, regularly eat plastic that has been
contaminated with human food.
❑ Plastic microbeads resemble fish eggs and are often eaten by jellyfish, egg-eating fish and filter feeders.
❑ Seabirds that skim the ocean surface while flying, such as albatrosses, cannot differentiate floating food from litter.
❑ Sonar of some animals can confuse plastic for squid and jellyfish.
❑ Hunting seabirds mistake small pieces of suspended plastic, such as cigarette lighters, for small prey fish.
❑ Red, pink and brown pieces of plastic debris are mistaken for shrimp.
A Svalbard reindeer died after getting tangled up in 40 Kg Of Plastic Found In Stomach Of Dead Whale In
plastic waste The Philippines
https://www.arctictoday.com/a-svalbard-reindeer-died- https://thelogicalindian.com/environment/whale-
after-getting-tangled-up-in-plastic-waste/ plastic/
https://www.nefco.int/case-studies/developing-a-framework-for-monitoring-plastic-pollution-in-seabirds-in-the-pan-arctic-
region/
 ❖ Plastic Pollution: Health and Environmental Impact

Effects on Humans- • Many adverse effects on human health due to the presence of additives
used in manufacturing of plastics
• For example plasticizers used as additive to provide flexibility in PVC.
• The three most commonly cited plastic additives are :

Flame
Bisphenol A Pthalates
Retardents
 ❖ Additives and their ILL-effects

• Act as endocrine disruptor in humans.

• Causes thyroid cancer, osteoporosis, hypo & hypertension.

• Reproductive, malformation, developmental disorders.

• Causes pulmonary system effects including asthma allergies.

• Impact on immune system, fatal and child development.

• Cancer, neurologic dysfunction.
 ❖ Bisphenol A

Uses ILL-effects
❖ Phthalates or Plasticizer
 ❖ Flame Retardants
Uses ILL-effects
 ❖ Bioaccumulation and Biomagnification :-Transfer of
Contaminants from Plastics to Organisms

➢ Most marine organisms obtain contaminants from plastics by ingesting plastic debris
(mostly micro plastics) thinking of them as plankton species. Adsorbed contaminants can
leach into digestive fluids and can be transferred to other tissues. As plankton species
form the foundation of every food web, any threat to them can have serious effects.

➢ Toxicants may bio accumulate in the tissues to produce high tissue toxicant
concentrations. Toxicant concentrations may also increase through transfer within a
food web (bio magnification).

➢ The transfer of contaminants within food webs is prevalent everywhere in the marine
food web and may even affect non-marine species such as polar bears and humans.
How much single-use
plastic waste do
countries generate?

Single-use plastic waste

generated per person in
selected countries in
2019 in kilograms.

Image courtesy of Statista.

❖ Different Plastic Waste
Management Practices
❖ Plastic Waste Management Practices – Its use in roads , issues and challenges

❑ Materials recovery facility :- A materials recovery facility, materials reclamation facility, materials
recycling facility or Multi re-use facility (MRF, pronounced "murf") is a specialized plant that receives,
separates and prepares recyclable materials for marketing to end-user manufacturers.

❑ MRFs are generally classified as either “clean” or “dirty,” depending on whether the facility handles materials
that are mixed with other municipal waste.

❑ MRFs play an important role in reducing the waste stream, the demand for raw materials,
and pollution associated with the manufacturing of new products.
❑ MRFs use a series of conveyers that carry recyclable materials over sorting screens or other mechanisms that
divide the materials. As single-stream recycling becomes more common, more facilities are designed to
accept and separate various types of recyclable materials.

❑ Automated systems can sort a number of materials simultaneously, such as paper, cardboard, aluminum,
plastic, and glass, using such tools as magnets and ultraviolet optical scanners. The mechanized process
is augmented by workers who sort items by hand.
 ❖ Sorting of Plastic Waste

❑ Plastic waste is usually sorted through a sequence of sorting steps.

❑ Separation of plastic from various types of waste streams represents one of major problematic process in
energy recovery through different thermochemical processes.

❑ The sorting of plastics is a very essential step in different waste management technique.

❑ These comprise a sorting on size, either manually or by means of sieves, an elimination of foreign materials
(e.g., metal and glass), a sorting on plastic materials and, finally, sizing and granulation into plastic recyclate.

❖ Different ways of Sorting of Plastic Waste

❑ Density sorting
❑ Hydro cyclones- uses centrifugal force, enhance material wettability.
❑ Magnetic Density Separation
❑ Heavy medium separation -using tetrabromoethane
❑ Triboelectric separation- sorts materials on the basis of a surface charge transfer phenomenon
❑ Speed accelerators - Paint Removal, Grinding & Solvent stripping
 1. Density separation

❑ The method of density difference between polymers

is known as sinking/flotation, which is a system that
separates a mixture of HDPE, LDPE, PP, PS and PVC.

❑ The small difference in the density value of these

compounds is sufficient to achieve good results with
this system.

❑ The procedure consists of introducing the mixture of

plastics (in pieces) into water, which contains a small
amount of surfactant, so that the water wets the
plastic.

❑ The polyolefins remain floating on the surface while

the PS and PVC sink to the bottom.

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/B97800810
26762000025
❑ A similar treatment is done with the PS, PVC mixture which is separated by means of a saline water solution.

❑ This method yields polyolefins and polystyrene in relatively clean fractions of 97% and 95% respectively, but
not PVC, which is collected contaminated by other materials.

❑ The process based on the solubility of plastics in different solvents consists of using a solvent to separate a
mixture of HDPE, LDPE, PP, PS and PVC.

❑ For example, a mixture of cyclohexanoxylene can be used as a solvent, causing the separation of three
different phases; one of PS, another of PVC and a third of polyolefins with purities per phase ranging
between 96 and 99%. In all cases, the polymer is recovered by precipitation using a precipitating agent.
 2. DMS & Hydrocyclones
❑ Density media separators (DMS) are well established as having very high throughputs and being the most
precise type of density separation process.

❑ DMS function on a float-sink basis where particles are added to a separation media with a density selected
to separate particles of different composition based on their buoyancy within the media.

❑ DMS baths or cones have been well established devices for separating coarser particles, usually ≈5–
300 mm.

❑ DMS cyclones traditionally having a conocylindrical form use centrifugal forces developed in cyclones have
become well established for separation of particles from 0.5 to 50 mm.

❑ These devices are the most versatile but also the most complicated in selection of operational parameters.

Fig. Media separation flow paths in

conocylindrical (A) and cylindrical (B) type
DMS cyclones
❑ Hydrocyclones are extensively used for classifying particles by size.

❑ This technique is based on the principle of centrifugal acceleration to separate plastic mixtures. It has no moving parts. The
hydrocyclons consist of a conic and linked cylindrical body, in which there is a tangential entrance for the feeding
suspension.

❑ They have the same physical form as DMS cyclones but are operated vertically where as DMS cyclones are operated at
≈30° from the horizontal to minimize effects due to particle form and especially particle size.

❑ The particle size of material to be treated in conocylindrical DMS cyclones is limited by the diameter of the cyclone and its
operation is complicated by the necessity that the material pass through the separation media pumping circuit so as to be
fed under pressure into the cyclone.

❑ Since DMS is a sink-float process, in the case of the conocylindrical type cyclones, the low-density particles which are
pumped along with the separation media into the cyclone must rise through the separation media to exit as a product.

❑ As a result, the low-density product tends to contain a minimum or no high-density contaminating particles.

❑ This is confirmed by the 100% purity of low-density particles obtained in tests by MBA Polymers (1998) with rounded
0.32 mm cubes. In the case cylindrical type cyclones, the high-density particles must sink through the separation media to
exit as a product, resulting in this product fraction containing a minimum or no low-density particles.

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S09213449
1000265X#fig0020
 3.Magnetic Density Separation
❑ Magnetic density separation (MDS) is a density-
based sorting technology, similar to the previously
introduced sink-float method.

❑ But instead of using a medium with a single cut

density, it uses a liquid separation medium with a
density gradient.
❑ Such liquid contains magnetic iron oxide particles
with a size about 10-20 nm suspended in water.

❑ By applying an artificial gravity, in the form of

magnetic force, that varies exponentially in the
vertical direction, the effective density of the
liquid varies in this direction as well.

❑ Plastic particles with the same density will float in

the liquid at the same level: where the effective
density is equal to their own density.

❑ On the basis of this principle, plastic mixtures

segregate into many different layers, and flakes
with the same density stay at the same vertical
height.
❖PRINCIPLE OF MDS

Fig- Forces on magnetic liquid in a magnetic field. Yellow arrow

is magnetic force; blue arrow is gravity; red arrow is total force.

https://repository.tudelft.nl/islandora/object/uuid:0c3717fa-8000-4de0-a938-
d65605bf2a96/datastream/OBJ/download
 5. Triboelectric separation
❑ For the separation of mixed plastics,
triboelectric separation makes it possible
to obtain high purity and recovery.

❑ The separation principle is based on the

difference in coulomb forces acting on
the plastics after triboelectric charging.

❑ Triboelectric separation is a dry method,

and therefore has the advantage over wet
separation methods that it doesn't
require wastewater treatment.

❑ The effect of operating parameters such

as electric field strength, polarity of
applied voltage, and triboelectric
charging time on the separation
efficiency is examined.
Sorting of Plastic Waste

YT video link- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zIPGUv35A5E

 ❖Different processes of management

❑ Plastics solid waste management

must be done in a way to reduce
the pollution along the process
and there by improve the efficacy
of the procedure and to achieve
energy conservation.

❑ Plastic waste management

technologies across the world have
been traditionally divided into four
general categories –

➢ Mechanical recycling,
➢ Feedstock recycling,
➢ Energy recovery and
➢ Landfilling.
 ❖ Recycling

➢ Recycling is the process in which the discarded

waste is recovered or reclaimed, reprocessed or
refined, to yield altered new products.

➢ Recycling of plastic mainly depends on the resin

Coad of plastic waste.

➢ A top priority of waste management has always

been recycling; it not only helps us in
protecting the health of the environment, but it
also contributes to reuse the waste
productively thereby, plummeting the space of
landfill.
 1. Mechanical recycling

❑ Mechanical recycling involves processing and

conversion of waste or scrap into a product
with similar properties of the original
product.

❑ Mechanical recycling of plastics involves the

recovery of products from plastic scrap while
maintaining the original molecular structure
of the material.

❑ When compared to the low cost and easy

glass recycling and very productive recycling
of metal materials, recycling of plastics is
quite Challenging apart from the several
technical obstacles to overcome, because of
their low density and value of the material.
 ❖ The Plastics Recycling Sequence

❑ Plastics are collected and sorted into

different types of plastics.
❑ The plastic articles are reduced in size
i.e. cut up into smaller pieces with a
granulator or shredder.
❑ The granulated flakes are put through a
wash plant to remove labels, residual
contents, and soil.
❑ After drying the granules are fed into
an extruder. They are melted and the
met is extruded through a multi-hole
die in the form of continuous strings.
❑ The strings are water cooled and
chopped into pellets by a revolving
cutter.
❑ The pellets are bagged and ready to be
sold to a converter who uses the
recyclate or recycled materials to
produce new plastics products.
 ❖Advantages of Mechanical Recycling

➢ The toxic components and pathogens are degraded by the use of high
temperatures.
➢ There is also a reduction in water volume due to the high operating
temperature.
➢ By using the produced gases as fuel one is able to limit the supply of
external fuel.
 ❖Disadvantage of Mechanical Recycling

➢ The process of recycling plastic can produce VOCs and carbon emissions into the
atmosphere. These are harmful to nearby plant and animal life.

➢ Much of recycled plastic finds its new home as a less useful product, often referred to as
downcyling. For example, a plastic bottle might become plastic furniture and in turn
there is still a demand to produce new plastic for plastic bottles.

➢ Products from recycled waste may not be durable. After the plastic has been recycled
once, it’s very rarely suitable for a second round of recycling.

➢ Increased processing cost and low-quality jobs.

 2. Feedstock recycling
➢ Feedstock recycling, also known as “chemical recycling,” is
the process of breaking down collected plastics into
monomers and other basic chemical elements
(“depolymerization”).

➢ The plastics undergo molecular and structural level changes

during this process and get converted to much simpler raw
material products which have superior thermal properties.

➢ This is an attractive option for plastic products that are

difficult to recycle mechanically due to low quality,
composite nature or low economic value. These monomers
can be used as virgin material alternatives in manufacturing
new polymers.

Feedstock recycling includes conversion process such as:

➢ Pyrolysis: the creation of syngas and liquid fuels through the
chemical and thermal decomposition of a material at high
temperatures and in the absence of oxygen.

➢ Gasification: the creation of syngas from the leftover char

from pyrolysis using extremely high temperatures and
minimal oxygen.
 A. Pyrolysis of plastic waste

➢ Pyrolysis is endothermic irreversible thermochemical degradation and decomposition of complex long chain organic
polymer molecules into units of simple short chain compounds at temperatures greater than 3000C in the absence of
atmospheric oxygen, with or without the application of pressure.

➢ Pyrolysis of plastic waste involves breaking down of the plastics into products of all the three phases solid, liquid and
gas.

➢ The solid phase product essentially known as char is mostly made of carbon and has minor proportions of other
elements based on the kind of plastic.

➢ The liquid product is oil like material and has properties similar to diesel as for plastics are originally petroleum based
products.

➢ The gaseous phase product is known as syngas (synthetic gas), and it also has a good calorific value.
Different reactor configurations used in
the pyrolysis and in-line reforming
process.

(a)Fluidized bed and fixed bed,

(b) fixed bed and fixed bed,
(c) spouted bed and fixed bed and ,
(d) spouted bed and fluidized bed.
Plastic pyrolysis process

YT Video Link - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ucDj5eetCO8

YT Video Link - https://youtu.be/RIT3UyoDE9Q
 B. Gasification of plastics
❑ The gasification of plastics pursues the maximum conversion to a gas product or syngas, with tar and char being the main
undesirable byproducts.

❑ Gasification involves several steps and complex chemical reactions but it can be summarized in the following steps:
Drying, pyrolysis, cracking and reforming reactions in the gas phase, and heterogeneous char gasification.

❑ These steps are set out in Fig. The significance of these steps on the process performance and their kinetics depends on
the feedstock characteristics and gasification conditions.

Scheme of the main steps occurring in plastics gasification.

The homogeneous gasification reactions include a wide variety of reactions, with the balance and the extent of
these reactions depending mainly on the gasifying agent used, its ratio in the feed (ER in the case of air/O2 or S/P
in the case of steam) and temperature.

These reactions are as follows:

0
 ❖ Chemical reactors for waste plastic gasification
The plastic gasification technologies are essentially those already developed for the gasification of other
feedstocks, such as biomass and coal.

However, the particular characteristics of waste plastics, especially the :-

➢ Low thermal conductivity,

➢ Sticky behavior,
➢ High volatile content and
➢ Remarkable tar formation,
Hinder their treatment in conventional gasification technologies and involve a serious challenge for the
process implementation.

Accordingly, a suitable gasifier design for handling plastic has to combine the following features:

i) Be able to provide high heat transfer rates in order to promote a fast plastic waste depolymerisation,
ii) Avoid operational problems related to the sticky nature of plastics by ensuring a good control of
operating conditions,
iii) Appropriate residence time distribution to favor tar cracking and
iv) Allow using primary catalyst in situ providing a good contact with this catalyst.

The main reactors conventionally used in biomass gasification are entrained flow, fixed bed, updraft,
downdraft, fluidized bed, rotary kiln and plasma reactor .
However, the complex characteristics of waste plastics have limited the use of some of these technologies. Thus

➢ The low or even null fixed carbon content hinders the gasification of plastics in updraft and downdraft gasifiers.
➢ The sticky nature of the polymers and the difficulties for their heating up also hinder the use of rotary ovens and, to
a lesser extent, rotary kilns.
➢ Fluidized beds have suitable features for avoiding these disadvantages, and have therefore been widely used in the
gasification of waste plastics .
In addition, other reactor designs, such as fixed beds, spouted beds and plasma reactors have been applied to waste
plastic gasification processes.

❖ Different types of fluidized beds used in gasification processes. (a)Bubbling fluidized bed, (b)circulating fluidized bed
and (c)dual fluidized beds.
❖ Schemes of (a) downdraft and (b) updraft gasifiers and (c) conical spouted bed gasifier for plastic treatment.
❖ Tar formation and evolution pathways in the gasification of plastics of different nature.
❖ Advantages of pyrolysis of plastics ❖ Disadvantages of pyrolysis of plastics

➢ The pyrolysis process is complex and requires high operational

➢ It allows the recycling of waste mixed
and investment costs.
plastics that cannot be efficiently recycled
by alternative means.
➢ Further, an air purification installation is necessary in order to
further treat flue gases from the pyrolysis.
➢ It permits the recycling of unwashed and
soiled plastics (e.g. agricultural plastics,
➢ Produced ashes contain a high heavy metal content,
mulch/silage/greenhouse films and
depending on the concentrations in the to-be-processed flow.
dripper/irrigation tube).
➢ Non-continuous (batch) processes are not commercially
➢ It enables recycling of plastic laminates, co-
viable;
extrusions and multilayer packaging films,
particularly those with aluminium foil layers
➢ Coking and carbon deposits on heat exchanging surfaces can
that are difficult to recycle using traditional
create problem.
reprocessing technologies.
➢ Stickiness of sand particles in fluidized-bed processes can
also create havoc.
 3. Incineration
➢ The practice of burning waste products in the presence of oxygen in excess amount for thermal degradation of the
waste is termed as incineration.

➢ Incineration is a chemical reaction in which hydrogen, carbon and other elements in the waste mixed with oxygen in
the combustion zone and heat are generated. CO2, CO, oxides of nitrogen and water vapour are some of the
principal gas which is produced by incineration process

➢ Combustion zone of the incinerator is designed within the area of 900 ̊C -1100 ̊C to ensure proper combustion and
elimination of odour from waste.

➢ Temperature, turbulence, time and flow of air are properly designed for the incinerator to minimize the gas
emission.

Numbers of options are available for MSW incineration plant technology, but only well-proven technology is executed.
New technologies have developed, but they are complicated and costly which is a big problem for a developing country
to execute as they lack the internal technical expertise to overcome them for which it leads to project failure.

Equipment is categorized into four core group based on their application

➢ Pre-treatment
➢ Combustion system
➢ Energy recovery
➢ Flue gas cleaning
❖Waste to Energy process
Waste to Energy Plant Ghazipur

YT Video Link - https://youtu.be/DYGQGygGwG8

 ❖ Advantages of incineration of plastics
➢ High calorific value of the plastic waste produces high
amount of energy.
➢ CO2 and other oxides are produced by the thermal
decomposition of the organic material and energy can
be recuperated for further power/heat requirement.
➢ Generation of power, income and creation of jobs.
➢ Energy from waste projects provides a substitute for
fossil fuel combustion because it is an exothermic
process.
➢ Volume of the waste is reduced by incineration process.
➢ In addition to burning, high-temperature environment
will lead to the decomposition of toxic plastic
components, such as benzene, etc.
❖ Disadvantages of incineration of plastics
➢ • Plastic is easy to burn, and it produces toxic gases when
burned, such as styrene is produced during the
combustion of polystyrene. A small amount of this
substance can cause blindness, vomiting and other
symptoms of inhalation.
➢ PVC burning will produce toxic hydrogen chloride gas.
➢ In addition to burning, high-temperature environment will
lead to the decomposition of toxic plastic components,
such as benzene, etc.
➢ Implementation of air pollution control equipment in
plant adds to the installation cost and makes it more
expensive.
➢ Requirement of skilled technical labor in operation of
plant.
➢ The process demands continuous supply of waste, and so
encourages its production.
 4. Landfilling

➢ Landfilling is an age old technique in

dealing with the plastic waste. With any
other waste in MSW, the plastic waste is
transported to the nearest landfill.

➢ The wet organic portion of the MSW gets

decomposed by the microorganisms, but
the waste plastics as they are non-bio
degradable remain consuming the space
and thereby reducing the life of a landfill.

➢ Plastic waste can also be said to create

aesthetic and visual disturbance and may
generate leachate containing hazardous
chemicals which escape from the
improper leachate collection system and
may end up in the ground water table
contaminating the water.
❖ Landfill shows a cell and activities associated with landfill
 ❑ Case Study :-
Ghazipur Waste Dumping Yard

❖ Can the city’s three trash

towers be flattened?
❖Ghazipur landfill mountain will be taller than the Taj Mahal….

YT Video link- https://youtu.be/oDEnvzx2Jt4

❖ Advantages of landfilling of plastics ❖ Disadvantages of landfilling of plastics

➢ Because of their low density, they consume a lot of space

and energy for transportation compaction.
➢ Cheapest and easiest management option.
➢ Low biodegradability of plastics interferes with the
➢ Requires less technical expertise.
utilisation of closed landfills as a recreation place hampering
the growth of plants in the area.
➢ Carbon sequestration.
➢ The protective liners used in the landfills to separate the
➢ Aesthetically and environmentally
waste from the soil and ground water resources may leak or
acceptable solution if properly managed
rupture with time and thus possess a long-term risk of soil
and monitored.
and groundwater contamination.
➢ Engineered landfills are always a better
➢ It is an irrecoverable loss of land and material as a resource.
option than irregular disposal and
Uncontrolled burning of plastic waste.
➢ Considered as a humble last disposal option.
❑ Plastic waste is projected to triple by 2060, according
to the latest forecasts by the OECD’s Global Plastics
Outlook, rising from 353 million tonnes of waste in
2019 to 1 billion tonnes over the course of the next
four decades.

❑ Two thirds of this is expected to be made up of

packaging, consumer products and textiles.
Plastic waste from construction and transport will also
be significant.
❑ While population growth is one reason for the coming
surge, another driver is economic growth. A bigger,
urban population means greater demands, production
and spending power.

❑ According to the report: "While OECD countries are

projected to double their plastics use, emerging
economies are expected to see much more significant
increases, from a six-fold increase in Sub-Saharan Africa
to a tripling in Asia."

❑ The report adds that despite such rapid growth, OECD

countries are still expected to be the biggest consumers
of plastics on an average per capita basis.
❖ Linear Economy v/s Circular Economy
 ❖Linear Economy
➢ A linear economy traditionally follows
the “take-make-dispose” step-by-step
plan.

➢ This means that raw materials are

collected, then transformed into
products that are used until they are
finally discarded as waste.

➢ Value is created in this economic system

by producing and selling as many
products as possible.
 ❖ Circular Plastic Waste Management
➢ A circular economy is restorative and regenerative by design. This means
materials constantly flow around a ‘closed loop’ system, rather than
being used once and then discarded.

➢ In the case of plastic, this means simultaneously keeping the value of

plastics in the economy, without leakage into the natural environment.

➢ The industry needs to be redesigned in such a way that plastic no longer

ends up as waste, thus addressing the issue at its core. Finding ways to
eliminate the production of single-use plastics and plastics that we don’t
need is essential.

➢ A circular economy presents opportunities for recycling and utilizing

recycled materials instead of relying on extracting more raw materials to
keep up with production and consumption demands.

➢ Moreover, a circular economy would help to narrow and slow flows as

well as create new loops for plastics, utilizing it as a resource, so that it
doesn’t end up in landfills, the environment, and even incinerators.
 ❖Plastics - Circular Economy
❑ Plastics are key enablers of a circular economy, directly facilitating the circularity of products and improving resource
efficiency and sustainability along the value chain. Plastics have a positive impact on a range of circularity levers across
product life cycles, including:

➢ Materials efficiency.
➢ Energy efficiency.
➢ CO2 reduction.
➢ Recyclability.
➢ Durability.
➢ Biodegradability.

❖Circular Economy solutions in plastic sector

➢ Produce plastics from alternative feed-stocks
➢ Use plastic waste as resource
➢ Redesign plastic manufacturing processes and products to improve longevity, reusability and waste prevention
➢ Increase collaboration between business and consumers to increase awareness on plastic recycling and reusing and
abandoning the throw-away culture
➢ Develop robust information platforms
 ❖Objectives of Circular Economy
➢ Design out waste and pollution from the system
➢ Keep products and materials in use
➢ Regenerate natural systems
➢ Redefine growth and focus on positive society-wide benefits
➢ Gradually decoupling economic activity from consumption of finite resources
➢ Transition to renewable energy sources
➢ Builds economic, natural and social capital

❖Why is Circular Economy Important?

As well as creating new opportunities for growth, a more circular economy will:

➢ Reduce waste
➢ Drive greater resource productivity
➢ Deliver a more competitive economy.
➢ Position the world to better address emerging resource security/scarcity issues in the future.
➢ Help reduce the environmental impacts of our production and consumption in the world
 ❖ Roadmap for Circular Economy for Plastics in India

The proposed roadmap for circularity in plastics sector in India through a set of three key priorities/objectives,
supported by action plan, actions under which can be measured and monitored over a certain timeline:

Short Term (ST) and Medium Term (MT) and Long Term (LT), where ST is 0–2 years, MT is 2–5 years and LT is > 5 years.

The three key objectives that are identified are:

➢ Adopting sustainable material solutions –use of bio-based polymers, substitution of virgin polymer with recycled
polymer, and dematerialization of plastic products.
➢ Increase supply of good quality secondary plastics feedstock (recycled plastics); and
➢ Invent, innovate, and encourage alternative uses of problematic plastics waste.

The implementation of the roadmap will require stakeholder coordination and collaboration including that between
the national government, state governments, city governments, and industry. Further, the political acceptability and
the financial viability of the various actions will play a key role in their uptake.
Roadmap for circularity in
plastics in India: Objectives
 ❖ Plastics Circularity Scenarios
Demand-side Potential: Key End-use Sectors

➢ Plastics are used for a variety of

different purposes application
categories/end-use sectors.

➢ Packaging is broadly categorized

into rigid packaging and flexible
packaging. Flexible packaging,
which is the newer form of
packaging, has the largest share
amongst the key end-uses.

➢ It also anticipates a strong

growth in the future due to
numerous advantages, such as
convenience in handling and
disposal, price advantage in
transportation, as well as its
portability, which has
traditionally been limited
by rigid packaging.
A) -Plastics circularity in packaging sector
B)- Plastics circularity in automotive sector

➢ In the automotive sector, Currently, there are

about 30,000 parts in an automobile vehicle,
out of which one-third are made up different
types of basic plastics and polymers (The
Plastics Industry Trade Association, 2016).

➢ They are used in the engine, body panels,

bumpers, and fascia systems,
chasis/suspension, seats/trims, HV AC
system, steering wheels, and light panels
among other sections in the vehicle.

➢ More than 70% of the plastic used in the

automobiles comes from six polymers: PP,
PVC, polyurethane (PU), PE, polycarbonate
and polyamide (nylon), (PET), and
acrylonitrile butadine styrene (ABS).
C)- Plastics circularity in building and
construction sector
➢ Properties of plastics such as being strong yet light
weight, durable, cost-effective, low maintenance,
non-corrosive makes them an attractive option in
the building and construction sector.

➢ Plastics are mainly used for seals, cladding, and

profiles (windows and doors), pipes (gas, water
supply, sewerage, OFD, plumbing, industrial
piping), cables, floor coverings, foam insulation,
window panels, sealants, floor protective sheets,
wall panels, industrial and hospital floorings,
bathroom and toilet fittings, submersible pump
parts, synthetic tiles and marbles, roto molded
water and chemical tanks, buried roto molded/
FRP septic tanks, ducts, wires, and cables.

➢ Polymers are also the binding materials of paints

and lacquerse (such as acrylate co-polymers,
epoxy and polyurethane). Piping and conduit in
construction are the largest users of polymers
using PVC and PE.
❖ Sustainable use Of Plastic waste
 ❖CONCEPTOS PLASTICOS @ Colombia

➢ Conceptos Plásticos works

with both recycling groups
and enterprises in Bogotá
which accumulate plastic
waste that is then melted
and poured into a mould to
form the bricks, via a
process called extrusion.

➢ By avoiding the transfer of

used plastics to refuse sites,
water and energy costs are
reduced, along with CO2
emissions.

https://latam.tech/conceptos-plasticos-the-colombian-startup-building-homes-out-of-recycled-plastic/3329/
 ❖ Recycling plastic waste into paving stones

Vats in which the plastic is melted.

This is the plastic waste used to make paving stones.

... and the final result.

Employees pour the mix of plastic and sand into vats.
 ❖Co-processing of Plastic waste in Cement Kiln

➢ The provisions that govern the co-processing of plastic waste in cement kilns were inserted in schedule 1 of the
Environment (Protection) Rule, 1986 and were called the Environment (Protection) Third Amendment Rules, 2016.
The amendment made co-processing a recognised method of waste management.

➢ Co-processing of plastic waste as Alternative Fuel and Raw Material (AFR). Co- processing indicate substitution of
primary fuel and raw material by waste.

➢ One of the advantage of recovery method used in existing facility is eliminating the need to invest on other plastic
waste practices and to secure land filling.

Different feed points that can be used to feed the plastic waste materials into the cement production process are
given below.
❑ The main burner at the rotary kiln outlet end
❑ The rotary kiln inlet end
❑ The pre-calciner
❑ The mid kiln (for long dry and wet kilns)
➢ Cement manufacturing is the most attractive
process for co-processing because of high flame
temperatures (2000 °C, material temperature
1400°C, residence time (4 to 5 seconds).

➢ Approx. 200 million tons per year cement

production in India needs 40 million tons of
coal.

➢ Automatic feeding mechanism for feeding PW

to cement kiln.

➢ Plastic Waste destroyed at a higher

temperature of around 1400°C

➢ PW's organic content gets fixed with the clinker

apart from its energy content, issue of residue's
land filling does not arises.
❖ Plastic roads: India’s radical plan to
bury its garbage beneath the streets
 ❖Use of Plastic waste in roads

➢ The credit goes to Prof R Vasudevan, a retired chemistry

professor who has spent the last two decades
researching and implementing the purposeful reuse of
waste plastic. “Plastic is my resource,” he says, as we
make our way to his lab, walking past heaps of plastic
wrappers, discarded carry bags, and plastic bottles.

➢ The roads constructed using waste plastic, popularly

known as Plastic Roads, are found to perform better
compared to those constructed with conventional
bitumen

➢ Plastic roads mainly use plastic carry bags, disposable

cups and PET bottles that are collected from garbage
dumps as an important ingredient of the construction
material.

➢ When mixed with hot bitumen, plastics melt to form an

oily coat over the aggregate and the mixture is laid on
the road surface like a normal tar road.
❖ Why use Plastics in Road
Construction

➢ Durable and Corrosion Resistant

➢ Good Binder
➢ Economical, Longer Life
➢ Maintenance Free
➢ Ease of Processing/ Installation
➢ Light Weight
➢ Improves Aggregate Impact Value
➢ Increases melting point of Bitumen
❖ Plastic Waste Used in Road Construction ❖ Plastic Waste Not Used in Road
Construction
➢ Films (Carrybags, Cups) upto 60micron Thickness (PE, PP, PS)
➢ Hard Foams(PS) any Thickness ➢ PVC Sheet
➢ Soft Foams (PE &PP)any Thickness ➢ Flux Sheet
➢ Laminated Plastic up to 60micron.

❖ Process Steps :-
The technology is simple and is describe as it involves:-

➢ Collecting waste plastics, including plastic carry bags, cups, soft and hard foams and laminated plastics;
➢ Cleaning it by washing;
➢ Shredding it to a uniform size;
➢ Melting the waste plastics at 165 degree celsius , and at temperatures of 165 degree celsius blending it with hot
aggregates and bitumen and using this mixture to lay the road.
 ❖Dry Process
➢ Aggregate is Heated to 170°C in Mini Hot Mix Plant.
➢ Shredded Plastic waste is added in equal proportion.
Processes

Dry Process
❖ Wet Process

➢ Waste Plastics directly Mixed with hot Bitumen

Wet process at160°C.
➢ Since the wet process require a lot of
investment and bigger plants.
➢ Addition of Stabilizers and proper cooling.
➢ Mechanical Stirrer is needed.
❖Block Diag. indicating
the process flow chart.
❖ Comparison between Ordinary and Waste Plastic Bituminous Road
❖Advantages of using plastic in making roads ❖ Disadvantages of plastic roads

➢ Stronger road with increased Marshall Stability Value.

➢ Better resistance towards rainwater and water stagnation.
➢ No stripping and no potholes. ➢ Cleaning process- Toxics present in the co-mingled
➢ Increase binding and better bonding of the mix. plastic waste would start leaching.
➢ Reduction in pores in aggregate and hence less rutting and ➢ During the road laying process- in the presence of
raveling. chlorine will release noxious HCL gas.
➢ No effect of radiation likes UV. ➢ After the road laying- It is opined that the first rain
➢ The strength of the road is increased by 100%. will trigger leaching. As the plastics will merely form
➢ The load is withstanding property increases. It helps to a sticky layer, (mechanical abrasion).
satisfy today’s need for increased road transport. ➢ The components of the road, once it has been laid,
➢ For 1km X 3.75m road, 1 ton of plastic (10 lakh carry bags) are not inert.
is used, and 1 ton of bitumen is saved.
➢ The cost of road construction is also decreased.
➢ The maintenance cost of the road is almost nil.
➢ Disposal of waste plastic will no longer be a problem.
➢ The use of waste plastics on the road has helped to provide
the better place for burying the plastic waste without
causing disposal problem.
❖ Implementation
❖ Possible Alternate Materials
to Plastics – Greener Alternatives
 ❖Green Plastics
Plastics are referred “green” if they exhibit one or more of the following properties:

❑ Source renewability
❑ Biodegradability/Compostability after end of the life
❑ Environmentally friendly processing

Green plastics are widely publicized as a possible solution for concerns regarding
the use of traditional petroleum based plastics.

❖Compostable plastic

❑ Compostable plastic is one that meets all scientifically recognized standards of compostabilty
regardless of the origin of carbon.
❑ European norm is EN 13432, and USA norm is ASTM D6400
 ❖ASTM D6400 – Main Factors ❖Biodegradable vs. compostable?
1. Mineralization

❑ 90 percent conversion to carbon dioxide, water and ❑ Compostable plastic is a subset of

biomass through the action of microorganisms. biodegradable plastic that will decompose in
the conditions and time frames during
❑ The same rate of degradation as other organic waste composting process.
(ie. leaves, grass ...)
❑ Compostable plastic is always biodegradable.
❑ Time period of 180 days or less.
❑ Biodegradable plastic is not always
2. Fragmentation compostable.

❑ Not more than 10% of the original dry weight of test

material shall fail to pass through a 2 mm fraction
sieve.

3. The impact on the environment

❑ No negative impact on flora and fauna.

 ❖What is bioplastic ?
❑ The term bioplastic does not
refer solely to biodegradable or
compostable plastics made from
natural materials.
❑ The name is also applied to
petroleum-based plastics that
are degradable, plant-based
plastics that are not necessarily
biodegradable, and plastics that
contain both petroleum-based
and plant-based materials that
may biodegrade or not.
❑ Essentially, bioplastics are bio-
based, biodegradable, or both.
❖What is bio-based plastic ?
❑ The term ‘bio-based’ means that
the material or product is at least
partly derived from biomass
(plants).
❑ Can be natural polymer or
synthetic plastic made from
organic macromolecules that are
derived from biological resources.
❑ To be classified as a bio-based
material it must be of organic
origin and contain a certain
percentage of new carbon derived
from biological resources.
❑ This definition is the base of ASTM
D6866
❖Biodegradable plastic
❑ Biodegradable generally refers to a
substance that can be broken down
by microorganisms in the
environment within a fixed period of
time.
❑ Effective biodegradation requires
specific environmental conditions
including temperature and level of
aeration, allowing microorganisms
to convert natural materials into
other natural substances such as
compost, water and carbon dioxide.
❑ With bioplastics, biodegradability is
directly linked to the chemical
structure and not necessarily to the
origin of the raw materials.
❖ Environmental preference spectrum of plastics
 ❖Bioplastics

❑ The range of biodegradable plastics available include:

➢ Starch based products including thermoplastic starch, starch

and synthetic aliphatic polyester blends, and starch and
PVOH blends.
➢ Water soluble polymer such as polyvinyl alcohol and
ethylene vinyl alcohol.
➢ Naturally produced polyesters including PVB, PHB and
PHBH.
➢ Renewable resource polyesters such as PLA.
➢ Synthetic aliphatic polyesters including PCL and PBS.
➢ Aliphatic-aromatic (AAC) co-polyesters.
➢ Hydro-biodegradable polyester such as modified PET.
➢ Photo-biodegradable plastics.
➢ Controlled degradation additive master batches.
 ❖Why Use Bioplastics? ❖Cons of Bioplastics

➢ They have a higher manufacturing cost—though this is

➢ Reduces or eliminates GHG in production.
changing as more companies begin to make bioplastics.
➢ Requires less or no petrochemicals.
➢ Composting may be possible only in industrial composting
➢ They reduce the use of fossil-fuels and reliance on
processes.
non-renewable resources.
➢ Some can interfere with or damage standard plastic
➢ Manufacturing process can use up to 65 per cent
recycling processes.
less energy and generates fewer greenhouse
➢ Use of plant sugar and starch sources could have a negative
gases than conventional plastic.
impact on food prices.
➢ Some are biodegradable and/or compostable.
➢ Bioplastics do nothing to change consumer behaviour
➢ Some can be recycled alongside conventional
regarding their use of plastic products.
plastics.
➢ Not all are biodegradable or recyclable.
➢ Some are non-toxic and safe for medical and
➢ If sent to landfill, some can release methane, a GHG
internal use.
➢ They’re not suitable for use in a number of products.
 ➢Applications of bio plastics

➢ Film including overwrap, shopping bags,

waste and bin liner bags, composting bags,
mulch film, silage wrap, body bags/coffin
liners, landfill covers, packaging – O2 & H2O
barriers, bait bags, nappy backing sheet, &
cling wrap.
➢ Flushable sanitary products.
➢ Sheet and non woven packaging.
➢ Bottles.
➢ Liquid paper board.
➢ Planter boxes and fishing nets.
➢ Food service cups, cutlery, trays, and straws.
➢ Loose fill foam.
 ❖Starch based polymers
➢ Biodegradable polysaccharide.
➢ Derived from plant sources, e.g. corn or potatoes.
➢ Thermoplastic starch (TPS) is formed after
application of thermal or mechanical energy.
➢ TPS is an alternative for polystyrene (PS)
➢ Disadvantages of additive-free TPS: low water
vapor barrier, poor mechanical properties, bad
processability, brittleness
➢ Applications: food packaging, disposable
tableware and cutlery, coffee machine capsules,
bottles
➢ Producers of starch-blends: e.g. Novamont,
DuPont, Starch Tech.
❖Biodegradable Polyester Family
 ❖Water Soluble Polymers

❑ Polyvinyl Alcohol (PVOH)

➢ Water Soluble vinyl polymer (although PVOH-degrading microorganisms need selective

enrichment to efficiently mineralize PVOH or PVOH-blends.

➢ Water-solubility is dependent on the hydrolysis ratio of the polymer.

➢ PVOH does not biodegrade, but simply dissolves in water. But it can be biodegraded by
activated sludge treatment.

➢ Raw materials are fossil-fuel based.

➢ Applications: Coatings (e.g. carbon dioxide barrier of PET), component of adhesives,

additive in the production of paper and board.

➢ PVOH can generally be utilised in a range of film applications.

➢ Producers: e.g. Kuraray, DuPont.

 ❖Water Soluble Polymers
❑Ethylene Vinyl Alcohol (EVOH)

➢ EVOH is another water–soluble synthetic plastic, and is used

as an oxygen barrier layer in multilayer film packaging.

➢ It is highly transparent, weather resistant, oil and solvent

resistant, flexible, moldable, recyclable, and printable.

➢ The high cost of EVOH is a significant barrier to it

widespread use in other biodegradable plastics applications.

➢ Due to its strong barrier against oxygen and gas, food

packaging manufacturers use EVOH in their packaging
structure to extend the shelf life of food products.

➢ Its drawback is that it is difficult to make and therefore more

expensive than other food packaging. Instead of making an
entire package out of EVOH, manufacturers keep costs down
by coextruding or laminating it as a thin layer between
cardboard, foil, or other plastics.
❖ Greener Plastic Products
 ❖Bagasse (sugarcane)
• Bagasse is the name for the residual fibers that remain after
the squeezing of sugarcanes at the sugar production. Usually,
they consist of 40 – 60% cellulose, 20 – 30% hemicellulose,
and about 20% lignin.

• Bagasse is primarily found in countries that produce a

particularly high amount of sugar, for instance Brazil, Vietnam,
China or Thailand.

• Even though bagasse is a so-called by-product, many people

see it as a waste product because in the past, bagasse was
mainly used as a fuel for the production plants. As a by-
product of the sugar production, bagasse does not require
additional cultivation areas and has no impact on the area of
forests.

• Nowadays, it is used for the production of building materials,

packaging materials, and disposable tableware. The paper
industry has also started to replace wood fibers with sugarcane
fibers to produce napkins, toilet paper and cardboards.
❖ STEPS IN BAGASSE PLATES PRODUCTION PROCESS
❖BAGASSE PLATES PRODUCTION PROCESS
 ❖ Production steps of bagasse products:

➢ Pulping: Soaping the pulp paper board and put into hydraulic pulper. After pulping, pulp will go into mixture tank and add
water and oil additive, then goes to pulp supply tub for forming machine, vacuum dewatering and forming.

➢ Forming: Forming is the key process in production line. The process is quantitative pulp supply, back flushing power supply,
vacuum dewatering and forming. With advance technology to eliminate holes, uneven thickness during production, so as to
reduce defective goods. The semi-finished product will be moved into drying mold for solidity.

➢ Shaping and drying: At this process, steam is used for heat drying. Compare to electrical heating, 70% energy will be saved,
meeting hygiene requirements of food packaging, enhance resource utilization. Qualified production rate is up to 99%.

➢ Edge cutting and sterilization: The product taken out from the shaper will be moved into edge cutting machine, where the
extra edge will be trimmed. UV sterilization is applied to make sure production meeting with hygiene requirement.

➢ Packaging: Final production is packed and stored.

 ❖Special characteristics of bagasse products

➢ Very stable, sturdy and not very flexible.

➢ Good thermal property: suitable for

temperatures from -25°C to 220°C;

➢ Water repellent and grease-proof: also

suitable for hot and very oily/greasy
dishes.

➢ Completely biodegradable &

compostable.
❖Plastic Waste Management Rules (India)
❖ Timeline of Imp. Environmental rules & Acts In India
❖ Timeline of the PWM Rules in India
 Plastic Waste
Management Rules, 2016

Plastic Waste Management

(amendement) rules, 2018

Plastic Waste Management

(amendement) rules, 2021

Plastic Waste Management

(amendement) rules, 2022
❖ The Plastics Waste Management Rules, 2016 -- Implemented On March 18, 2016
➢ The Government has notified the Plastic Waste
Management Rules, 2016, in suppression of the earlier
Plastic Waste (Management and Handling) Rules, 2011.

➢ The Minister of State for Environment, Forest and

Climate Change, Shri Prakash Javadekar, said here today
that the minimum thickness of plastic carry bags has been
increased from 40 microns to 50 microns.

➢ He stated that 15, 000 tonnes of plastic waste is generated

every day, out of which 9, 000 tonnes is collected and
processed, but 6, 000 tonnes of plastic waste is not being
collected.

➢ The rules, which were admissible upto municipal areas,

have now been extended to all villages.
❖ Plastic Waste Management Rules, 2016 From a comparative lens:

❑ The new Plastic Waste Management Rules which

were released on March 18, 2016 arrived with a lot
of attention- about 238 suggestions/objections were
recorded through consultative meetings on the draft
rules of 2015, which were later examined by the
Working Group, which gave recommendations and
eventually paved way for these new set of rules as
PWM Rules, 2016.

The key areas which these new rules thrust on, are-

➢ Emphasizing on plastic waste recycling, source

segregation.

➢ Making the waste pickers, recyclers and waste

processors an integral part of the whole system.

➢ Adopting the “polluter-pays principle” for the

ensuring sustainability in waste management.
 Plastic Waste Management Rules, 2016

WHATS NEW ?

➢ Minimum thickness of Plastic carry bags increased from 40 to 50 Microns.

➢ Responsibility of local bodies and gram panchayat. ❖ This Rules shall apply to every

➢ Responsibility of Waste generator. ➢ Waste Generator

➢ Local body,
➢ Collect back system and extended producer’s liability. ➢ Gram Panchayat,
➢ manufacturer,
➢ Responsibility of retailers and street vendors. ➢ Importers and producer.

➢ Registration of shopkeepers and street vendors.

https://cpcb.nic.in/displaypdf.php?id=cGxhc3RpY3dhc3RlL1BXTV9HYXpldHRlLnBkZg==
 ❖Key Definitions of as per PWM Rules, 2016:
➢ “Brand owner” - means a person or company who sells any commodity under a registered brand label;

➢ “Carry bags”- mean bags made from plastic material or compostable plastic material, used for the purpose of carrying
or dispensing commodities which have a self-carrying feature but do not include bags that constitute or form an integral
part of the packaging in which goods are sealed prior to use;

➢ “Commodity“ - means tangible item that may be bought or sold and includes all marketable goods or wares;

➢ “Compostable plastics” - mean plastic that undergoes degradation by biological processes during composting to yield
CO2, water, inorganic compounds and biomass at a rate consistent with other known compostable materials, excluding
conventional petro-based plastics, and does not leave visible, distinguishable or toxic residue;

➢ “Consent“- means the consent to establish and operate from the concerned State Pollution Control Board or Pollution
Control Committee granted under the Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1974 (6 of 1974), and the Air
(Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1981 (14 of 1981);

➢ “Disintegration” - means the physical breakdown of a material into very small fragments;

➢ “Energy recovery”- means energy recovery from waste that is conversion of waste material into usable heat, electricity
or fuel through a variety of processes including combustion, gasification, pyrolisation, anaerobic digestion & landfill gas
recovery”;
➢ “Extended producer’s responsibility” - means the responsibility of a producer for the environmentally sound
management of the product until the end of its life.

➢ “Food-stuffs” - mean ready to eat food products, fast food, processed or cooked food in liquid, powder, solid or semi-
solid form;

➢ “Facility”- means the premises used for collection, Storage, recycling, processing and disposal of plastic waste;

➢ “Importer”- means a person who imports or intends to import and holds an Importer - Exporter Code number, unless
otherwise specifically exempted.

➢ “Institutional waste generator”- means and includes occupier of the institutional buildings such as building occupied
by Central Government Departments, State Government Departments, public or private sector companies, hospitals,
schools, colleges, universities or other places of education, organisation, academy, hotels, restaurants, malls and
shopping complexes;

➢ “Local body”- means urban local body with different nomenclature such as municipal corporation, municipality, nagar
palika, nagar nigam, nagar panchayat, municipal council including notified area committee (NAC) and not limited to or
any other local body constituted under the relevant statutes such as gram panchayat, where the management of
plastic waste is entrusted to such agency;

➢ “Manufacturer”- means and include a person or unit or agency engaged in production of plastic raw material to be
used as raw material by the producer.
➢ “Multi-layered packaging”- means any material used or to be used for packaging and having at least one layer of plastic as
the main ingredients in combination with one or more layers of materials such as paper, paper board, polymeric materials,
metalized layers or aluminium foil, either in the form of a laminate or co-extruded structure;

➢ “Plastic”- means material which contains as an essential ingredient a high polymer such as polyethylene terephthalate,
high density polyethylene, Vinyl, low density polyethylene, polypropylene, polystyrene resins, multi-materials like
acrylonitrile butadiene styrene, polyphenylene oxide, polycarbonate, Polybutylene terephthalate;

➢ “Plastic sheet”- means Plastic sheet is the sheet made of plastic;

➢ “Plastic waste”- means any plastic discarded after use or after their intended use is over;

➢ “Prescribed authority”- means the authorities specified in rule 12;

➢ “Producer”- means persons engaged in manufacture or import of carry bags or multilayered packaging or plastic sheets or
like, and includes industries or individuals using plastic sheets or like or covers made of plastic sheets or multi-layered
packaging for packaging or wrapping the commodity;

➢ “Recycling“- means the process of transforming segregated plastic waste into a new product or raw material for producing
new products;
➢ “Registration”- means registration with the State Pollution Control Board or Pollution Control Committee concerned,
as the case may be;

➢ “Street vendor”- shall have the same meaning as assigned to it in clause (l) of subsection (1) of Section 2 of the Street
Vendors (Protection of Livelihood and Regulation of Street Vending) Act, 2014 (7 of 2014);

➢ “Virgin plastic”- means plastic material which has not been subjected to use earlier and has also not been blended
with scrap or waste;

➢ “Waste generator”- means and includes every person or group of persons or institution, residential and commercial
establishments including Indian Railways, Airport, Port and Harbour and Defence establishments which generate
plastic waste;

➢ “Waste management”- means the collection, storage, transportation reduction, re-use, recovery, recycling,
composting or disposal of plastic waste in an environmentally safe manner;

➢ “Waste pickers”- mean individuals or agencies, groups of individuals voluntarily engaged or authorised for picking of
recyclable plastic waste.
 ❖Conditions (as per ‘rule # 4’)

➢ Carry bags and plastic packaging shall either be in natural shade which is without any added pigments or made using only
those pigments and colourants which are in conformity with Indian Standard : IS 9833:1981 titled as “List of pigments
and colourants for use in plastics in contact with foodstuffs, pharmaceuticals and drinking water”.

➢ Carry bags made of recycled plastic or products shall not be used for storing, carrying, dispensing or packaging ready to
eat or drink food stuff.

➢ Carry bag made of virgin or recycled plastic, shall not be less than 50 microns in thickness.

➢ Plastic sheet or like, which is not an integral part of multi-layered packaging and cover made of plastic sheet used for
packaging, wrapping the commodity shall not be less than 50 microns in thickness except where the thickness of such
plastic sheets impair the functionality of the product.

➢ The manufacturer shall not sell or provide or arrange plastic to be used as raw material to a producer, not having valid
registration from the concerned State Pollution Control Boards or Pollution Control Committee;

➢ Sachets using plastic material shall not be used for storing, packing or selling gutkha, tobacco and pan masala;
 ❖ Plastic waste management by ULBs (as per ‘rule # 5’)

b) Non-Recyclable Plastic waste

a) Recyclable Plastic waste

Local bodies should encourage

Reg. Plastic waste Recycler Energy recovery & Road

construction & waste to oil

c)
Thermoset plastics d) Inerts from recycling &
processing facilities

Processed & disposed off according to

standards & pollution control norms Disposed off according to
SWMR 2016
 ❖ Responsibility of local body (as per ‘rule # 6’)

➢ Ensuring segregation, collection, storage, transportation, processing and disposal of plastic waste;

➢ Ensuring that no damage is caused to the environment during this process;

➢ Ensuring channelization of recyclable plastic waste fraction to recyclers;

➢ Ensuring processing and disposal on non-recyclable fraction of plastic waste in accordance with the
guidelines issued by the CPCB;

➢ Creating awareness among all stakeholders about their responsibilities;

➢ Engaging civil societies or groups working with waste pickers ;

➢ Ensuring that open burning of plastic waste does not take place;
 ❖ Responsibility of Gram Panchayat (as per ‘rule # 7’)
➢ Every gram panchayat either on its own or by engaging an agency shall set up, operationalise and co-ordinate for
waste management in the rural area under their control and for performing the associated functions, namely

• ensuring segregation, collection, storage, transportation, plastic waste and

channelization of recyclable plastic waste fraction to recyclers having valid registration;
• ensuring that no damage is caused to the environment during this process;

• creating awareness among all stakeholders about their responsibilities;

• ensuring that open burning of plastic waste does not take place
 ❖ Responsibility of waste generator (as per ‘rule # 8’)

• Every person responsible for organising an event in open space, which involves service of food stuff in plastic
or multi-layered packaging shall segregate and manage the waste generated during such event.

• Waste generator shall minimize generation of plastic waste and segregate.

• Litter plastic waste and handover segregated plastic waste – Local bodies.

• All institutional waste generator shall segregate and store in accordance with municipal solid waste
management rules.

• All waste generator shall pay user fee.

❖Responsibility of producers, Importers and Brand Owners(as per ‘rule # 9’)

Plan of
Shall work out for
waste collection collection to
Responsible be submitted
system based on
Within 6 EPR to collect to SPCB
months(from Date Producers, back sachets
Producer
of publication of importers and and pouches
rules brand owner

Should not use

Shall apply any plastic or
After expiry of 6 multi layer
to PCB for months of
packaging .
Within 3 registration Producers publication of rules
month of (without reg.)
Producer publication
of rules
 ❖Marking or labelling (as per ‘rule # 11’)
❑ Each plastic carry bag and multi-layered packaging shall have the following information printed in English namely, -

a) name, registration number of the manufacturer and thickness in case of carry bag;

b) name and registration number of the manufacturer in case of multi-layered packaging; and

c) name and certificate number [Rule 4(h)] in case of carry bags made from compostable plastic
 ❖Prescribed Authority (as per ‘rule # 12’)

Pollution Control Board and

Pollution Control Committees States and Union Territories
• Enforcement of provisions for registration, manufacturing of
plastic products, processing & disposal of plastic waste.
Secretary in charge of urban
development States & Union territories
• Enforcement of provisions relating to waste management by
waste generators.

Concerned Gram panchayats Rural areas (State or Union territories)

• Provisions relating to waste management by waste generator.

 ❖Registration of producer, recyclers and manufacturer (as per ‘rule # 13’)
➢ No person shall manufacture carry bags or recycle plastic bags or multi-layered packaging unless he has obtained a
registration from SPCB or PCC.

➢ Every producer shall, for registration or renewal of registration make an application to the SPCB or the PCC.

➢ Every person recycling or processing waste or proposing to recycle or process plastic waste for registration or renewal of
registration for the recycling unit, shall make an application to SPCB or the PCC.

➢ SPCB or PCC not to issue certificate of registration, unless unit possess valid consent under Water and air (prevention and
control of pollution) act

➢ Every manufacturer engaged in manufacturer of plastic to be used as raw material by the producer for the grant of
registration or for the renewal of registration, in Form III. shall make an application to the SPCB or the PCC of the Union
territory concerned.

➢ The SPCB or the PCC shall not renew registration of producer unless the producer possesses an action plan endorsed by
the Secretary in charge of Urban development of the concerned State or Union Territory for setting of plastic waste
management system.

➢ Decision on the grant of registration shall be taken within 90 days of receipt of an application which is complete in all
respects.
 ❖ Registration of producer, recyclers and manufacturer (as per ‘rule # 13’)
➢ The registration granted under this rule shall initially be valid for a period of one year, unless revoked, suspended or
cancelled and shall subsequently be granted for three years.

➢ State Pollution Control Board or the Pollution Control Committees shall not revoke, suspend or cancel registration
without providing the opportunity of a hearing to the producer or person engaged in recycling or processing of plastic
wastes.

➢ Every application for renewal of registration shall be made at least 120 days before the expiry of the validity of the
registration certificate.

❖ Responsibility of retailers and street (as per ‘rule # 14’)

➢ Retailers or street vendors shall not sell or provide commodities to consumer in carry bags or plastic sheet or multi-
layered packaging, which are not manufactured and labeled or marked, as per prescribed under these rules.

➢ Every retailers or street vendors selling or providing commodities in, plastic carry bags or multilayered packaging or
plastic sheets or like or covers made of plastic sheets which are not manufactured or labelled or marked in accordance
with these rules shall be liable to pay such fines as specified under the bye-laws of the local bodies.
❖ Explicit pricing of carry bags (as per ‘rule # 15’)

The shopkeepers and street vendors willing to provide plastic carry bags
for dispensing any commodity shall register with local body. The local
body shall, within a period of six months shall make provisions for such
registration on payment of a minimum fees of Rs. 48,000 i.e. Rs.4000
p.m. as plastic waste management fees.

Only the registered shopkeepers or street vendors shall be eligible to

provide plastic carry bags for dispensing the commodities .

The local body shall utilize the amount paid by the customers for the
carry bags exclusively for the sustainability of the waste management
system within their jurisdictions.
 ❖ Annual reports (as per ‘rule # 17’)

• Every person (engaged in recycling or processing)

• Local body(under intimation to SPCB)

• State pollution control board, pollution control committee

• Central pollution control board

• Central Government
 ❖ Plastic Waste Management (Amendment) Rules, 2018

➢ The amended rules recommend a central registration system for the registration of the producer, importer or
brand owner.

➢ The rules clarify that the registration mechanisms should be automated and should take into account ease of
doing business for producers, recyclers and manufacturers.

➢ The centralised registration system will be evolved by Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) for the
registration of the producer, importer or brand owner.

➢ Producers with presence in more than two states need to apply for national registry with the Central
Pollution Control Board, while, small producers or brand owners operating within one or two states require a
state-level registration with the State Pollution Control Board.
❖ Plastic Waste Management (Amendment) Rules, 2022
 ❖What are the Provisions under the New Rules?

❑ Classification of Plastics:

➢ Category 1: Rigid plastic packaging will be included under this category.

➢ Category 2: Flexible plastic packaging of single layer or multilayer (more than one layer with different types of
plastic), plastic sheets and covers made of plastic sheet, carry bags, plastic sachet or pouches will be included
under this category.

➢ Category 3: Multi-layered plastic packaging (at least one layer of plastic and at least one layer of material other
than plastic) will be included under this category.

➢ Category 4: Plastic sheet or like used for packaging as well as carry bags made of compostable plastics fall under
this category.

❑ Plastic Packaging: Reuse of rigid plastic packaging material has been mandated in the guidelines to reduce the use
of fresh plastic material for packaging.

➢ The enforceable prescription of minimum level of recycling of plastic packaging waste collected under EPR along
with use of recycled plastic content will further reduce plastic consumption and support recycling of plastic
packaging waste.
❑ Extended Producer Responsibility Certificates:
➢ In a significant first, the guidelines allow for sale and purchase of surplus extended producer responsibility
certificates.

➢ This will set-up a market mechanism for plastic waste management.

❑ Centralised Online Portal:

➢ The government has also called for establishing a centralised online portal by Central Pollution Control Board
(CPCB) for the registration as well as filing of annual returns by producers, importers and brand-owners, plastic
waste processors of plastic packaging waste by 31st March, 2022.

➢ It would act as the single point data repository with respect to orders and guidelines related to
implementation of EPR for plastic packaging under Plastic Waste Management Rule, 2016.

❑ Environmental Compensation:
➢ Environmental compensation will be levied based upon polluter pays principle, with respect to non-fulfilment
of EPR targets by producers, importers and brand owners, for the purpose of protecting and improving the
quality of the environment and preventing, controlling and abating environment pollution.

➢ The Polluter Pays Principle imposes liability on a person who pollutes the environment to compensate for the
damage caused and return the environment to its original state regardless of the intent.
❑ Committee to Recommend Measures:

➢ A committee constituted by the CPCB under the chairmanship of CPCB chairman will recommend measures
to the environment ministry for effective implementation of EPR, including amendments to Extended
Producer Responsibility (EPR) guidelines.

➢ Annual Report on EPR Portal: State Pollution Control Board (SPCBs) or Pollution Control Committees
(PCCs) have been tasked to submit an annual report on EPR portal with respect to its fulfillment by producers,
importers and brand-owners and plastic waste processors in the state/Union Territory to the CPCB.

❖What are the other Initiatives taken to Curb Plastic Waste?

➢ Swachh Bharat Mission
➢ India Plastics Pact
➢ Project REPLAN
➢ Un-Plastic Collective
➢ GoLitter Partnerships Project
 ❖ Implementing plastic waste management in states & districts

➢ As guiding principles, there is an urgent need to reconsider strategy around bans. They need to be
enforced with strong IEC modules and stricter enforcement, as will as viable alternatives for plastic
products.

➢ Subsidy-driven models should be replaced with output focused models. MoUs should be signed with
companies to accept plastics as inputs, and bulk purchasing can be undertaken by governments. This can
sustain market-driven cycles of plastic waste management.

➢ Collection of plastic waste should be formalized and local entrepreneurs should be supported financially
and institutionally.

➢ EPRs should be leveraged to place burdens on large producers for collection of plastic waste.

➢ There should be strong IEC and monitoring across the value chain to ensure that systems are working
optimally.
 ❖ Duties of citizens

❑ Here are five things we all can do to hold governments accountable:

❖ Contact your representatives - Tweet at them, call them, or write letters and emails.

❖ Ask your representatives to release strategies for combating plastic pollution - For example, find out whether your
country has banned microbeads in personal care products, and if they haven’t, send a letter urging action.

❖ Ask for a timeline - Whether you ask your local government to ban plastic bags or your national government to ban
microbeads, request a detailed timeline for implementation.

❖ Show up to community events - After making your voice heard by writing your representative, show up to public
forums, committee meetings, speaking events, and other gatherings your representatives hold locally. Tell your
politicians your concerns about the plastic pollution crisis and listen to their responses.

❖ Follow up - Use the information you’ve gathered to ensure your representatives keep the commitments they’ve
made. Call, email, and follow up again. Thank them when measures pass that reducing plastic pollution and protect
the environment. If they fail to meet your expectations, tell them.
❑Way Forward…
➢ A blanket ban will not stop manufacturers from producing single-use plastic products.

➢ Finding substitutes for use-and-throw plastic and ensuring alternative livelihoods for producers, waste pickers and
other groups involved in the business will go a long way in solving the problem.

➢ The government should not only place fines for not adhering to the guidelines but incentivise producers to switch to
more sustainable products. Along with proper monitoring, promoting responsible consumerism is very important.

➢ Citizens also have to bring behavioural change and contribute by not littering and helping in waste segregation and
waste management.
❖ Plastic Waste Sources Statistics
❑ According to a United Nations
paper and several media reports,
77 countries in the world have
passed some sort of full or partial
ban on plastic bags.

❑ While plastic bag bans are

especially popular in Africa, a
majority of the 32 countries who
have opted instead to charge a fee
(or tax) to limit plastic bag use are
located in Europe.
❑ Developing countries have been
more likely to outright ban
certain types of plastic bags
since they are dealing with the
mismanagement of plastic
waste more.

❑ Africa has been most prominent

among them since it lacks a
strong lobby of plastic
producers.
Data from manufacturers’ association Plastics
Europe shows that 51 percent of the world's
plastic was produced in Asia in 2019.

China, responsible for 31 percent of the

world's plastics production, produced 82 kg
per capita, while Japan at only 3 percent of
global production managed to produce 88 kg.

Japan is also the country with the most plastic

packaging waste per capita in the world
behind the U.S., according to the U.N.

NAFTA countries produced 19 percent of the

world's plastic in total, but the equivalent of
141 kg per capita in 2019 - the highest per-
person toll.
Supermarkets in these developed nations
certainly tell the story of heavy plastic use, with
many individually wrapped items and ready-to-
go meals in single-use packaging on display.
This is especially visible in Japan as well as the
U.S.
 ❖ "Talking Trash: The Corporate Playbook of False Solutions",

❑ The Changing Markets Foundation has released

a new report naming and shaming the world's
worst plastic waste offenders.

❑ The report states that the companies involved

are actively taking steps to obstruct and
undermine legislative solutions aimed at
tackling an unprecedented global plastic waste
crisis.

❑ Out of the top-eight plastic producers on the

planet, five are American. The report focused on
companies who actually took the step of
announcing the amount of plastic they produce.

❑ The report goes on to outine how the industry

in the United States has successfully managed
to shift the blame for plastic waste on to
conumers and the authorities while higher rates
of recycling are being cited as an excuse to
produce even more plastic.
 ❖ Biggest Single-Use Plastic Waste Producers
❑ Published by The Mindaroo Foundation,
The Plastic Waste Makers Index analyzed
1,000 factories to determine the
companies producing the most single-
use plastic waste.

❑ The research found that 20 companies

were responsible for generating 55
percent of all single-use plastic waste in
2019.

❑ The main offenders are petrochemical

giants who produce the polymers that
become everything from plastic bottles
to face masks.

❑ ExxonMobil was the biggest worst

producer, generating 5.9 million metric
tons of single-use plastic waste in 2019.
It was followed by by Dow and Sinopec
with 5.6 million tons and 5.3 million tons,
respectively.
❑ The research also looked
into the countries
generating the most single-
use plastic waste per capita
with Australia one of the
very worst ranked.

❑ In 2019 the average

Australian generated 59 kg
of bottles, packaging and
other plastic waste while the
United States came second
with 53 kg.

❑ The problem was not as

pronounced in the world's
most populous nations with
China and India only
generating 19 kg and 4 kg,
respectively.
 ❖ Countries which Export & Import Plastic Waste
❑ The global battle about who will deal
with the world’s trash is raging on. After
China banned the import of plastic
waste in 2019, other Asian countries
have expanded into the sector that
carries the inherent risk of air, land and
maritime pollution.

❑ After China backed out, Vietnam and

Malaysia became some of the biggest
plastic waste importers in Asia, while
Turkey also appeared on the scene as
a net importer of European plastic
waste.

❑ Most of the plastics arriving in Asia

are routed through Hong Kong.

❑ Most of the plastic waste comes from

countries like Japan, the United States
and France, which were among the
biggest net exporters of plastic scrap
and waste in 2020.