20 Years of Government Responses to the Global Plastic Pollution
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NICHOLAS INSTITUTE FOR ENVIRONMENTAL POLICY SOLUTIONS 20 Years of Government Responses to the Global Plastic Pollution Problem The Plastics Policy Inventory Rachel Karasik, Tibor Vegh, Zoie Diana, Janet Bering, Juan Caldas, Amy Pickle, Daniel Rittschof, and John Virdin Nicholas Institute for Environmental Policy Solutions nicholasinstitute.duke.edu 20 Years of Government Responses to the Global Plastic Pollution Problem The Plastics Policy Inventory Author Affiliations Acknowledgements Rachel Karasik, Tibor Vegh, Amy Pickle and John The authors gratefully acknowledge the valuable Virdin: Duke University Nicholas Institute for peer-review provided by Dr. Karen Raubenheimer, Environmental Policy Solutions Australia National Centre for Ocean Resources and Zoie Diana, Janet Bering, Juan Caldas, and Daniel Security (ANCORS), University of Wollongong, Rittschof: Duke University Nicholas School of the and Prof. Tony Walker, Dalhousie University. Environment Additionally, the study benefited from collabora- tion with Common Seas and guidance provided by Citation Ben Jack, as well as from early suggestions by Neal Karasik, R.,* T. Vegh,* Z. Diana,* J. Bering, J. Tangri, Global Alliance for Incinerator Alternatives. Caldas, A. Pickle, D. Rittschof, and J. Virdin. 2020. 20 Years of Government Responses to the The study drew upon research conducted by Emily Global Plastic Pollution Problem: The Plastics Melvin, Emma Schmaltz, and Zoie Diana as part Policy Inventory. NI X 20-05. Durham, NC: Duke of a Bass Connections Course led by Dr. Meagan University. Dunphy-Daly, Duke University, and support- ed by Dr. Jason Somarelli, Duke University, as *Designates co-first authorship well as by Mengqi Li and Rocky Guzman, led by Prof. Kathinka Furst, Duke Kunshan Universi- ty. Jason Gray edited the report, and Josh Wil- Published by the Nicholas Institute for Environmental son designed the web interface for the Plastics Policy Solutions in 2020. All Rights Reserved. Policy Inventory. Prof. Steve Roady, Duke Law Publication Number: NI R 20-05 School, provided guidance to the study design. Finally, the study was enhanced through collab- Cover image: Panaramka oration with colleagues from the Pew Charitable Trusts, including Winnie Lau, Sarah Baulch, Margaret Murphy, Kevin He, Jim Palardy, Graham Murphy, Matt McKillop, and Kate Williams. Support for this project was provided by The Pew Charitable Trusts. The views expressed are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Pew Charitable Trusts. CONTENTS Executive Summary 6 Chapter One: Introduction to the Plastic Pollution Problem in the Ocean 14 1.1 Scale of the Plastic Pollution Problem in the Global Ocean 14 1.2 The Role of Governments in Addressing Plastic Pollution in the Ocean 16 1.3 Objective and Scope of this Study 17 Chapter Two: Methods Used 20 2.1 Conceptual Framework 20 2.2 Methods 20 Chapter Three: Government Responses to the Plastic Pollution Problem 25 3.1 The Baseline for Government Responses to the Plastic Pollution Problem: Solid Waste Management 25 3.2 Defining the Additional Policy Response to Address Plastic Pollution: A Typology of Plastics Policy Instruments 26 3.3 The Global Plastics Policy Inventory of Government Responses to the Plastic Pollution Problem 28 3.4 Responses at the Global Level: International Policy 32 3.5 Responses at the Regional Level: Regional Agreements and Strategies 44 3.6 Responses at the National Level 57 3.7 Responses at the Subnational Level 74 Chapter Four: State of the Science on Plastics Policy Effectiveness 80 4.1 Overview of What Has Been Measured 80 4.2 Observed Effects of Plastic Bag Policies 82 4.3 Observed Effects of Other Plastic Policies 90 4.4 Key Information Gaps on the Effectiveness of Plastics Policy Instruments 91 Chapter Five: Summary of Policy Recommendations from the Scientific Community 92 5.1 Common Recommendations for All Land-Based Sources of Plastic Pollution 92 5.2 Recommendations for Land-Based Sources of Macroplastic Pollutants 93 5.3 Recommendations Specifically for Plastic Bag Pollution 94 5.4 Recommendations Specifically for Other Types of Single-Use Plastic Pollutants (E.g., Plastic Bottles) 95 5.5 Recommendations for Microplastic Pollutants 96 Chapter Six: Elements of an EffectiveGlobal Government Plastics Response Policy Analysis 97 6.1 “All of the Above”: Elements of an Effective Response at Each Level of Governance 97 6.2 The International Level: A Binding Global Treaty to Reduce Land-Based Sources 97 6.3 The National and Subnational Levels: A Policy Instrument Selection Matrix 100 Chapter Seven: Summary of Key Findings and Recommendations 104 7.1 Policy Design: How Governments Have Responded to the Problem 104 7.2 Policy Effectiveness: What Has Worked and What Has Not 110 7.3 Policy Recommendations: Proposals from the Scientific Literature 112 7.4 Recommendations for Expanding the Field of Plastics Policy Research 115 Glossary 117 References 119 Appendix I. Brief Overview of the Plastic Pollution Problem 126 1.1 Growth in Global Plastic Production 126 1.2 Leakage of Plastic Waste into the Environment 130 1.3 Plastic Pollution in the Ocean 132 Appendix II. Detailed Description of Methods Used 138 2.1 Conceptual Framework Guiding the Analysis 138 2.2 Methods 139 Appendix III. Summary of International Policy Instruments at the Global Level 157 Appendix IV. Summary of International Policy Instruments at the Regional Level 167 Africa 167 Antarctica 167 East Asia and the Pacific 168 Europe and Central Asia 171 Latin America and the Caribbean 187 Middle East 189 South Asia 190 Appendix V. Summary of Instruments in National Laws or Regulations 191 Africa 191 East Asia and the Pacific 202 Europe and Central Asia 212 Nicholas Institute for Environmental Policy Solutions, Duke University | 4 Latin America and the Caribbean 228 Middle East and North Africa 239 North America 240 South Asia 244 Appendix VI. Summary of Instruments in Subnational Laws or Regulations 250 Africa 250 East Asia and the Pacific 251 Europe and Central Asia 260 Latin America and the Caribbean 262 North America 263 South Asia 278 Appendix VII. National Policies to Address Land-Based Sources of Plastic Pollution from the Plastics Policy Inventory, in Each of the Top 20 Coastal Countries Producing Mismanaged Plastic Waste 283 Appendix VIII. Plastic Pollutants from Land-Based Sources Banned in the Policies Analyzed 285 Appendix IX. Policies to Ban, Tax or Effect Levies on Plastic Bags in the Sample Analyzed 290 Appendix X. List of Technologies Found to Reduce Plastic Pollution 295 Appendix XI. Library of Scientific Literature on Plastics Policy 301 Nicholas Institute for Environmental Policy Solutions, Duke University | 5 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Study Objectives, Scope, and Methods Used Plastic pollution in the ocean is a global problem that requires cooperation from a wide range of groups (e.g., governments, producers, consumers, researchers, civil society). However, by virtue of their core regulatory powers, governments have a critical role to play in helping to solve this problem. This study aims to synthesize the policy response of governments to the global plastic pollution problem, as a basis for more rigorous monitoring of progress (as called for in Resolution 4/6 of the 2019 United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA) meeting) and to inform future public policies. The scope of the study is limited to public policies introduced during the period from January 2000 to July 2019, prior to the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. As governments mobilize to respond to the pandemic, certainly these policies may change, so that this study may provide a baseline for “before- after” comparisons. Additionally, the scope of this study is limitedto those polices explicitly aiming to reduce plastic leakage. At the same time, generally applicable waste management policies are considered to be fundamental to addressing the problem, even if they are not explicitly intending to do so (i.e., they were not designed at least partially in response to the problem of leakage of plastic into the ocean). For the purpose of this study, the current and future trends in these generally applicable policies are considered as part of the baseline or business-as-usual scenario, unless they have been amended or adjusted explicitly to respond to the plastic pollution problem. This study aims to identify and characterize the additional response from governments, which in combination with general waste management policies, equals the total possible government response to the marine plastic pollution problem. To achieve the study’s objectives, a noncomprehensive, global Plastics Policy Inventory was developed, based on searches of: (1) global policy databases as primary sources of data, (2) scientific literature and an ad hoc review of non-refereed literature as secondary sources, and (3) media resources. As a cross-check, ten experts were consulted to identify any gaps in the first iteration of the inventory. Searches of the scientific literature were conducted on the following interdisciplinary scientific or legal research databases: Web of Science, Google Scholar, and HeinOnline (legal literature). From these databases, over 13,000 returns were screened, resulting in a Plastics Policy Library of 136 articles studying one or more public policies aiming to address plastic pollution. The Plastics Policy Inventory1 currently includes 291 policy documents explicitly aiming to address plastic pollution since 2000, as well as 370 policy documents expected to have an impact on plastic pollution though not explicitly intending to do so, 75 non-English policy documents retained for future translation and screening, and finally 442 references to plastics policy documents from the scientific and grey literature reviewed (where the actual policy document has yet to be located). The inventory can currently be considered comprehensive only for policies at the international level (containing 97 percent of the total number of known policies, i.e., either found or referenced in the literature reviewed), but can be considered indicative for policies at 1. See: https://nicholasinstitute.duke.edu/plastics-policy-inventory.