New UN Report Provides Roadmap to Reduce Plastic Pollution by 80% and Create Circular Economy

A new report by the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) suggests that plastic pollution could be reduced by 80 percent by 2040 if countries and companies implement significant policy and market changes using existing technologies. The report, titled “Turning off the Tap: How the world can end plastic pollution and create a circular economy,” emphasizes the need for concrete practices, market shifts, and policies to combat plastic pollution and promote a circular economy.

Inger Andersen, the Executive Director of UNEP, highlights the detrimental effects of plastic pollution on ecosystems, human health, and climate stability. The report provides a roadmap to minimize these risks by adopting a circular approach that keeps plastics out of ecosystems, eliminates their impact on human bodies, and promotes their use in the economy. By following this roadmap and incorporating its principles into negotiations on the plastic pollution deal, significant economic, social, and environmental benefits can be achieved.

The report outlines three essential market shifts required to achieve an 80 percent reduction in global plastic pollution by 2040: reuse, recycle, and reorient and diversify products. To implement reuse effectively, governments must support initiatives such as refillable bottles, bulk dispensers, deposit-return schemes, and packaging take-back schemes. By doing so, 30 percent of plastic pollution could be reduced by 2040. To enhance recycling as a stable and profitable venture, it is necessary to eliminate fossil fuel subsidies, enforce design guidelines to enhance recyclability, and undertake other measures to increase the share of economically recyclable plastics from 21 to 50 percent, resulting in an additional 20 percent reduction in plastic pollution. Furthermore, replacing products like plastic wrappers, sachets, and takeaway items with alternatives made from materials such as paper or compostable materials can lead to a 17 percent decrease in plastic pollution.

However, even with these measures, an estimated 100 million metric tons of plastics from single-use and short-lived products will still require proper management annually by 2040. This can be addressed by establishing and implementing design and safety standards for the disposal of non-recyclable plastic waste and holding manufacturers responsible for products that release microplastics.

The transition to a circular economy would result in significant savings, totaling USD 1.27 trillion when considering costs and recycling revenues. An additional USD 3.25 trillion could be saved by avoiding externalities such as health issues, climate change, air pollution, marine ecosystem degradation, and litigation-related costs. Moreover, this shift could generate a net increase of 700,000 jobs by 2040, particularly benefiting low-income countries and improving the livelihoods of workers in informal settings.

While the recommended systemic change requires significant investment costs, amounting to USD 65 billion per year, it is lower than the projected spending without such change (USD 113 billion per year). Much of this funding can be sourced from redirecting planned investments for new production facilities or implementing a levy on virgin plastic production to support the necessary circular infrastructure. However, time is of the essence, as a five-year delay could result in an additional 80 million metric tons of plastic pollution by 2040.

The report highlights that operational costs are the highest in both a throwaway and circular economy. By implementing regulations that ensure plastics are designed for circularity, Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) schemes can cover the operational costs associated with ensuring circularity by requiring producers to finance the collection, recycling, and responsible end-of-life disposal of plastic products.

To overcome the limitations of national planning and business action, internationally agreed policies are crucial. These policies can support a thriving global circular plastics economy, unlock business opportunities, create jobs, and may include criteria for banning certain plastic products, establishing cross-border knowledge baselines, setting minimum operating standards for EPR schemes, and implementing other standards.

The report suggests that a global fiscal framework