Why plastic packaging?
Plastic packaging fulfils many different functions: it ensures the hygiene and safety of products, protects them from external influences, provides space for necessary consumer information and often plays an important role in the purchasing decision through attractive packaging design and shelf appeal.
The linear approach to plastics packaging currently dominant in the industry is not sustainable, and instead the loop needs to be closed to create a sustainable and mutually beneficial circular economy. This is an issue currently being addressed globally, but it is essential that in South Africa it is implemented within the landscape of our local economy.
A key part of this process is to continually research and innovate to produce plastics solutions that use raw materials most efficiently – to reduce overuse or excessive use of virgin plastic resources and integrate more recycled materials at production level. Furthermore, Bowler’s participation and involvement in driving a circular economy model for South Africa extends into awareness and education, supporting and funding.
What is a circular economy?
We live in a world where take, make, dispose-of is a way of life – this is known as a linear model. But it is not sustainable. How we think, act and create needs to urgently transition to a circular economy within which waste becomes a resource. This is often referred to as ‘closing the loop’ and it implies that products traditionally seen as waste are rather seen as resources which can be brought back into the supply chain after they’ve completed their original purpose. In this model, plastic packaging isn’t regarded as waste; rather, it re-enters the economy as a valuable resource.
The circular economy considers every stage of a product’s journey – before and after it reaches the customer. This approach is not only vital to stop plastic pollution, but studies show, it offers the strongest economic, social, and climate benefits.
A circular economy has the potential to reduce the annual volume of plastics entering our oceans, generate savings within the industry boosting the economy, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and create additional jobs. It is possible through the use of a circular economy approach to plastic production to achieve a number of key goals in South Africa.
What are the benefits of using a circular industry model?
- Within a circular economy model plastic waste provides economic value
- A circular economy offers local waste sector job opportunities, for example Waste-preneurs
- Waste is diverted away from landfills towards value-adding alternatives such as reuse and recycling, simultaneously supporting the environment
- In addition to job opportunities, this model offers industry wide education, knowledge and up-skilling providing social value to the economy through human capital.
What are some of the solutions to current issues?
Alternatives to landfill are in the forms of:
- prevention – efficient use of virgin plastic through continued design research and innovation,
- reuse – keeping product with the consumer for longer,
- recycling – re-implementing the same plastic back into production,
- and recovery – efficient and effective collection and waste management to avoid littering and allow products to reenter the circular economy.
In the past, efforts to tackle plastic pollution have focused narrowly on improving waste management or clean-ups. Some efforts have focused too single-mindedly on plastic bans or an urge for reduction in plastic use. None of these approaches will work in isolation. These efforts focus on trying to fix a linear economy model rather than a shift towards a circular one. In a circular model, success lies on each link in the chain taking responsibilities in their sector. We must prioritise innovating what packaging is put on the market, whilst also increasing the ability to keep plastic in the loop after it has been used. Furthermore, resource consumption can be reduced if materials are kept within the cycles of the economy for as long as possible.
What is the new policy in South Africa?
The development of the Section 18 EPR plan
Packaging SA, Plastics|SA, the various PRO’s (Producer Responsibility Organisations) such as PETCO and Polyco, and other invested parties have been engaging with Government regarding the proposed Section 18 notice. Section 18 refers to the Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) aspect of the National Environmental Management Waste Act (NEMWA). The industry welcomed the adoption of a Section 18 process as it allows industry to raise, manage and disburse Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) fees themselves and take ownership of driving a circular economy model in South Africa. By keeping stakeholders involved in the process it is possible to ensure funding is localised in plastics industry and the project is driven by the plastics industry.
What is the current status of the policy?
On 26 June, 2020 the Minister of Environment, Forestry and Fisheries (DEFF), Ms. Barbara Creecy, published an amendment to the National Environmental Waste Act in the form of draft Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) regulations. Members of the industry submitted their feedback at the end of August 2020.
Once approved and promulgated, plastics producers and PRO’s will have 6 months to become compliant. The Minister has made it clear that she wants to implement the new regulations as soon as possible, and there is talk that it could be in place as soon as the fourth quarter of 2020. It is likely that the targets for the 1st year and reporting requirements will commence at the beginning of 2021. As currently drafted, the requirements essentially come into effect on the date of publication of the final notice, which could be as early as September 2020.
What does a circular economy look like in South Africa? What are the challenges and the responsibilities?
Representatives of the plastics and packaging industries, raw material suppliers, converters, brand owners, international fast-moving consumer goods companies, recyclers, and environmental organizations are developing a workable, local plan that fits the South African context and our particular environmental, socio-political and economic realities.
What is the Plastics Master Plan for Growth?
The Master Plan approach has been used in several other sectors as a collaboration between industry, labour and government to develop a vision for the plastics industry in South Africa, identify blockages, constraints and challenges, and develop a strategy in the form of a set of key actions that need to be taken forward over the short and medium term in which all parties can participate, and take responsibility for.
What are the responsibilities?
Once promulgated, the Section 18 EPR plan or the Extended Producer Responsibility Plan will substantially change the regulatory environment in South Africa, not only for producers and users of packaging, but for our various Producer Responsibility Organisations, i.e. PETCO, Polyco, and others.
It will be the responsibility of the various Producer Responsibility Organisations (PRO’s) to drive sector-based waste minimisation programmes, manage financial arrangements for funds to promote the reduction, reuse, recycling and recovery of waste; drive awareness programmes and innovate new measures to reduce the potential impact of products on health and the environment.
Companies that manufacture consumer products have a responsibility to promote sustainable packaging and support the transformation to a circular economy. But progress will only be possible if all stakeholders along the entire value chain join forces.
Developing sustainable solutions for this challenge will only be possible if we engage and collaborate across the entire value chain – from suppliers, trade partners, consumers and organisations through to government.
What does Extended Producer Responsibility mean?
Extended Producer Responsibility requires that the producer (which includes all sectors of the supply chain, including retailers and consumers) takes joint responsibility to deal with the product created and all the waste it creates after its commercial life. The National Environmental Management: Waste Act Act 59 of 2008 (NEMWA) makes this a legal requirement for all involved. Education to ensure plastic packaging is reduced to only what is necessary, reused as much as possible by the consumer, and recycled by consumers, separating it from waste going to landfill, keeping it within the circular economy model for as long as possible.
What are the goals for a circular industry in South Africa?
The The Waste Research Development and Innovation (RDI) Roadmap presented by the Department of Science & Technology, South Africa presents a structured national approach to waste RDI over the 10 year period 2015-2025, as a means of supporting the implementation of national policy, strategy and planning on waste and secondary resources management in South Africa.
Other key goals for our local circular economy include:
- Improve South Africa’s waste infrastructure. Used plastics need to be collected and removed from the environment. An adequate waste management infrastructure (that is able to deal with recyclable as well as non- recyclable waste) must be developed and put in place at municipalities around the country.
- Reduce contaminants in the waste stream. Plastics recycling can continue to grow through a collaborative effort to reduce the contaminants in the incoming waste stream, e.g. compostable and biodegradable material.
- Provide assistance to recyclers in terms of challenges within their recycling operations.
- Develop alternatives for difficult-to-recycle plastics. There are certain materials and plastic products that are not economically viable to collect, transport or recycle. Innovative solutions need to be developed for these difficult-to-recycle materials.
- “Recyclables are a valuable resource and should be removed from the solid waste stream before reaching landfill where they become contaminated and extraction costly. Similarly, stakeholders have to work together to manufacture locally, process efficiently and manage the end-of-life products so that they benefit the consumer, the industry and the planet,” Anton Hanekom, Executive Director at Plastics/SA.
What are Bowler’s responsibilities?
Bowler was a founding member of both PETCO and Polyco and began its involvement with voluntary participation and cooperation with PRO’s before it was legally required to do so. Bowler has taken an active participation in the drive towards a circular economy for plastic packaging in South Africa and is well placed to be a driver for effective change and dissemination of knowledge due to its historical involvement to date.
Member certificates:
Sources:
www.packagingsa.co.za | www.plasticsinfo.co.za | www.polyco.co.za | petco.co.za | www.supermarket.co.za | www.csir.co.za/developing-waste-rdi-roadmap
