According to the latest studies carried out by various sources, close to 80 percent of the plastic in the oceans comes from terrestrial garbage, much of which ends up in the sea through one of the ten most important rivers in the world. Also, 60 percent of the oceanic plastics end up in five countries in Southeast Asia. Collaboration and innovation as part of the solutions to end plastic waste in the environment.
"This is where we have to start, but it is a complex problem. In many of these emerging markets, economic progress has been significant in recent decades. Industries have grown. Middle class populations have increased. Societies have integrated into the global economy", said during the debate April Crow, vice president at Circulate Capital. "But despite these improvements, investments in infrastructure related to waste have not followed the same rate of growth and economic progress. And this is causing tons and tons of plastic waste to seep into our waterways and ultimately into the ocean,” he added.
The debate on plastic waste, moderated by the director of the Foundation for the Circular Economy, Anabel Rodríguez, had the participation of Martin Kayser, vice president of Product Safety at BASF; Gary Crawfor, Vice President of International Affairs at Veolia; Stefan Strathmann, director of International Packaging Technology Laundry & Home Care in Henkel; and April Crown, vice president at Circulate Capital.
Unmanaged plastic waste is a complex problem, the solution is not unique. A global and integrated strategy must be adopted that deploys multiple solutions working in combination over time.
In this sense, the work of was presented Alliance to End Plastic Waste, the largest initiative covering the entire plastic value chain that aims to put an end to plastic waste in the environment, and under which more than 40 entities are grouped.
"The Alliance provides a framework for collaboration between all those entities, both in the public and private sectors, and administrations committed to the fight against plastic waste that ends up thrown away and/or dispersed in the environment", said Gary Crawford. "By bringing together all the agents of the plastics value chain, the Alliance can capitalize on the technical and engineering experience of each sector, our collective resources and global reach, and the vision of those that operate in regions where the challenge is great. From preventing the generation of waste, to recovering, reusing and recycling plastics after use, the Alliance has a comprehensive strategy that will have a real impact where it is most needed", he added.
"the companies represented in the Alliance combine experience in the field of engineering, science, material design, resource optimization and waste management", pointed out Martin Keyser the company is one of those that are part of the alliance
Keyser explained the 4 axes on which the Alliance's strategy is based to address this challenge:
- Development of infrastructure to collect and manage plastic waste and increase its recycling;
- Innovation to advance and scale new technologies that facilitate the recycling and recovery of plastics and create more value from plastics once they have been used;
- Education and commitment on the part of administrations (in all areas, community, national, regional and local), companies and communities to promote and undertake actions; and,
- Cleaning of those areas where plastic waste is concentrated that is already in the environment, in particular, those that constitute the main routes of waste dispersion, such as rivers.
For his part, Stephan Strathmann, in addition to the importance of collaboration between all the agents who participate in the value chain of plastics, in innovation. "The recyclability of plastic waste is essential to achieve a circular economy with regard to this material", pointed out Strathmann. There are R+D+I projects in terms of improving recyclability, and significant progress has been made, such as in the recycling of colored polypropylene, but we need to continue working on this matter", he added.
During the debate it was also made clear that infrastructure is a critical point in the solution, especially in developing countries. The companies that are part of the Alliance have allocated funds for the development of projects related to the 4 axes of their strategy.
Likewise, in the debate the lack of markets for recycled raw materials was underlined, another area in which work needs to be done.
The debate "New Global Alliance Commits to End Plastic Waste in the Environment", took place in the framework of the ISWA Congress 2019 which took place in Bilbao (October 7 to 9) and in which 1,500 experts from 80 countries from five continents have participated. The main themes of the Congress were sustainable cities, waste management technology, digital innovation, climate change, social innovation and marine litter. ISWA2019 also analyzed the latest trends and technologies in waste management and political environmental sustainability.
