Tackling Plastic Pollution

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Tackling Plastic Pollution TACKLING PLASTIC POLLUTION: Legislative Guide for the Regulation of Single-Use Plastic Products First published by the United Nations Environment Programme in 2020 Copyright © 2020 United Nations Environment Programme ISBN No: 978-92-807-3853-7 Job No: DEL/2351/NA This publication may be reproduced in whole or in part and in any form for educational or non-profit services without special permission from the copyright holder, provided acknowledgement of the source is made. UN Environment Programme would appreciate receiving a copy of any publication that uses this publication as a source. No use of this publication may be made for resale or any other commercial purpose whatsoever without prior permission in writing from UN Environment Programme. Applications for such permission, with a statement of the purpose and extent of the reproduction, should be addressed to the Director, Communication Division, UN Environment Programme, P. O. Box 30552, Nairobi 00100, Kenya. Disclaimers Mention of a commercial company or product in this document does not imply endorsement by UN Environment Programme or the authors. The use of information from this document for publicity or advertising is not permitted. Trademark names and symbols are used in an editorial fashion with no intention on infringement of trademark or copyright laws. Photos © Shutterstock UNEP promotes Layout and printing: UNON Publishing Services Section – ISO 14001-certified environmentally sound practices globally and in its own activities. Our distribution policy aims to reduce UNEP’s carbon footprint. TACKLING PLASTIC POLLUTION: Legislative Guide for the Regulation of Single-Use Plastic Products ii Table of Contents Abbreviations .........................................................................................................................................v Acknowledgements ...............................................................................................................................vi Executive summary .............................................................................................................................viii 1. Introduction ......................................................................................................................................1 1.1. About the guide .............................................................................................................................................2 1.2. Caveats and limitations .................................................................................................................................3 1.3. Methodology ..................................................................................................................................................4 2. Key considerations in drafting legislation on single-use plastics .......................................................6 2.1. Developing legislation on single-use plastic ..................................................................................................7 Establish a baseline ..............................................................................................................................................7 Consider the objectives and policymaking principles ...........................................................................................7 Select the appropriate regulatory approach or combination of approaches ..........................................................9 Engage in transparent and diverse consultations ...............................................................................................10 2.2. Legal drafting considerations ......................................................................................................................12 Definitions ..........................................................................................................................................................12 Transparency ......................................................................................................................................................12 Roles and responsibilities ...................................................................................................................................12 3. Regulatory approaches ...................................................................................................................14 3.1. Bans and restrictions ...................................................................................................................................15 Single-use plastic products to be targeted .........................................................................................................15 Material composition ..............................................................................................................................................................15 Activities to be targeted ...............................................................................................................................18 Exemptions ..................................................................................................................................................18 Alternatives ...............................................................................................................................................................................19 Alternative plastics ..................................................................................................................................................................19 Alternative (non-plastic) materials ..............................................................................................................21 Phase-out periods and effective dates ........................................................................................................21 Enforcement and penalties ..........................................................................................................................22 Implementation challenges and unintended impacts ..................................................................................23 3.2. Economic instruments .................................................................................................................................24 Taxes ...........................................................................................................................................................24 Point of charge .........................................................................................................................................................................25 Taxed and exempted products ..............................................................................................................................................26 Unit to be taxed ........................................................................................................................................................................26 Tax rate ......................................................................................................................................................................................26 Enforcement and compliance ...............................................................................................................................................27 Use and management of revenues ......................................................................................................................................28 Implementation considerations and challenges and unintended impacts ...................................................................28 Tax breaks, subsidies and other fiscal incentives ..............................................................................................................29 3.3. Standards, certification and labelling ..........................................................................................................31 Standards relating to consumer safety and environmental protection ................................................................31 Criteria and specifications .....................................................................................................................................................31 Certification ..............................................................................................................................................................................31 Labelling or marking................................................................................................................................................................33 Enforcement and compliance ...............................................................................................................................................35 Implementation challenges and unintended impacts ..........................................................................................36 3.4. Post-consumer use and product end of life .................................................................................................37 Waste management legislation ...........................................................................................................................37 Prevention and minimization of single-use plastic waste ................................................................................................37 Collection, separation and recovery of single-use plastic waste ....................................................................................37
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