[Reader-list] Indian new Plastic Waste Law notified

[Ravi Agarwal]

(http://moef.nic.in/downloads/public-information/DOC070211-005.pdf)



pl circulate and apologies for x posting


Dear all,

This is the new Indian plastics waste law notified yesterday. It
incorporates Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) for plastics waste
management for the first time, and is a significant change from the earlier
law made in 1999. (EPR makes waste as part of the life cycle of the
product/packaging, in legal and management terms)

 It is close to what was proposed by a special committee late last year, but
with significant differences favoring the industry, especially which dealt
with restricting that kind of plastic packaging which cannot be recycled
properly.

There is dilution of direct industry responsibility for setting up and
management of collection centers (the committee had proposed both financing
and managing the centers by the industry, while the notified law is
ambivalent about managing the centers by the industry, but more clear about
funding) as well as of a proposed condition that provisions for collecting
of  end-of-life  multi layered packaging must be made before it can be
introduced in the market.

The dilution seems to be owing to pressure from the large packaging industry
(including FNB) and the plastics industry.


Some significant features:
1. plastic bags less than 40 micron banned
2. plastics bags will not be available free of cost to the consumer.
3. Introduction of a mandatory 'waste management' clause in the law with EPR
4. Setting up of plastic waste management centers in each municipality
funded by the industry under EPR (the committee had proposed both funded by
and managed as well)
5. Labeling of bags and multilayered packaging (we had proposed more
extensive labeling)
6. Setting up on a State level advisory body (in each State) for overseeing
the implementation with civil society as a part of the body
7. Ban on open burning of plastics
8 Ban on use of small packages from tobacco and 'gutka' (as per Supreme
Court orders)

The committee had proposed some more stringent measures regarding size of
bags, conditional introduction of new multilayered packaging etc. taxes and
duties, which seems to have been removed.


Best
ravi agarwal