COPIOUS amounts of plastic waste find their way into our waterways every day, despite multiple state and federal programmes to encourage recycling.
The “no-plastic bag” policy, the separation of household waste streams, and the freeze on imports of non-recyclable plastics – all these have not stopped plastic bags from clogging our drains, or stopped plastic bottles from being washed by stormwater into our rivers, littering the coastline and wreaking havoc on the environment.
As they wash away out of sight, giving a false sense of security, the build-up of plastic waste in our rivers and oceans has overwhelmingly impacted plants, wildlife, and communities.
Perhaps, the incentives and deterrents to deal with plastic waste are not in the right places.
When China implemented an import ban on plastic waste, it forced major waste-exporting countries to invest in developing their own waste management capacity. Creating new jobs, recovering value from waste, and engaging the community towards civic consciousness – these are among the incentives and deterrents in place to create a circular economy.
Perhaps, not enough value has been assigned to our waste collectors. Perhaps, technology is not getting to the right places. Perhaps, there is a lack of understanding about the profitability in the medium and long term.
The application and enforcement of existing laws need to happen, and the public needs feedback of the objective sort. This is so that as communities, we can each strive to do better and better – whether as students, teachers, homemakers, employers, employees, product designers, business owners, or policymakers.
Do we continue the linear economy of taking, making, and wasting, or will we follow nature and build a circular ecosystem for a sustainable future?
Watch this month’s edition of Breaking Down the Issues on plastic waste, and let us know what you think by emailing us at [email protected].
This project is brought to you by advocacy and research group Sekhar Institute together with the Good Capitalism Forum, which promotes responsible social capitalism and Malaysia’s hottest news portal The Vibes. – The Vibes, June 20, 2021
