Transitioning to a New Plastics Economy
Plastics have come to be indispensible materials that deliver
great value and performance in the several applications they serve. While
plastics, in general, and plastics packaging, in particular, are an integral
part of the global economy and deliver many benefits, their archetypically
linear, take-make-dispose value chains entail significant economic and
environmental drawbacks.
While these negatives have been known for some time, it is only
in the past few years that the true extent has become clear. We now know, more
than 40 years after the launch of the first universal recycling symbol, that
only 14% of plastic packaging is collected for recycling globally. More
importantly, each year, $80-120 billion worth of plastic packaging material
value is lost to the economy. Much of this ends up in landfills where, given
their recalcitrant nature, they will persist for hundreds of years. A
significant quantity also ends up in water bodies and eventually makes its ways
to the seas. Projections that, in a business-as-usual scenario, the oceans
could contain more plastics than fish (by weight) by 2050 have stunned the
public; images of islands of plastic waste floating in the middle of otherwise
pristine oceans have enraged environmentalists and prodded governments to seek
adequate responses from all stakeholders.
Bans galore
In India several States, including Maharashtra, have rolled out
harsh measures, including outright bans on certain plastic articles, in a
desperate attempt to curb rampant littering, whose impacts go beyond just
spoiling the aesthetics of our neighbourhoods. Thin-walled plastic bags,
indiscriminately disposed, clog sewers leading to flooding and choke animals to
death. Bans on carry-bags made out of plastic film less than 50 microns thick
have been in place for some time now, but have been largely ineffective.
The recent move by the Maharashtra government goes far beyond –
all carry bags have been banned, as have foamed polystyrene containers, and
several other goods. Charges have been mandated for certain plastic containers
– such as PET bottles – with refunds made on their return. Some exceptions have
been made, such as use of plastic films for milk packaging – a recognition that
the material is indeed the best packaging option for this every day need.
Fundamental redesign and innovation needed
According to a report – The new plastics economy: Rethinking the
future of plastics – launched at the World Economic Forum annual meeting in
2016 – without fundamental redesign and innovation, about 30% of plastic
packaging will never be reused or recycled. These packaging are, by their very
design, destined for landfill, incineration or energy recovery, and are often
likely to leak into the environment after a short single use. The problem is
particularly worse in the emerging economies where much of the incremental
growth in plastics packaging is happening.
A good example of the problem is the ubiquitous plastic sachet
used to package all sorts of goods – detergents, personal care products,
cooking oil, to name a few. While the availability of these small pack sizes
has opened up markets for these products, especially amongst the lower economic
strata, they pose an immense environmental challenge due their leakage into the
environment. What is clearly needed here is material innovation in recyclable
or compostable alternatives to the currently unrecyclable multi-material
applications.
At a more general level, there is a need for fundamental
redesign of packaging concepts and delivery mechanisms. For some segments, this
means reinvention from scratch; for others, it means scaling existing solutions
or accelerating progress made so far. Bans are an option, but should be the
last one.
Reuse – economically attractive for 20% of packaging
For at least 20% of plastic packaging used globally, reuse is an
economically attractive opportunity. New models that effectively replace
single-use packaging with reusable alternatives are already being demonstrated
in the cleaning- and personal-care markets by only shipping active ingredients
in combination with reusable dispensers. Product innovation – such as
concentrated liquid detergents – are reducing pack sizes, as well.
Several large FMCG companies are also taking up the challenge of
bringing back into their factories and those of their partners as much of used
plastics as they put out in the first place – in a sort of mass balance
exercise.
With concerted efforts on design and after-use systems,
recycling could be economically attractive for the remaining 50% of plastic
packaging. Recycling and reusing of thermoplastics is very much feasible even
with current technologies. Even halogenated polymers, such as polyvinyl
chloride, can be handled.
Recycling without downgrading
Recycle and reuse has more often than not meant a downgrading of
polymer properties, relegating their use to less discerning applications. Food
grade polymers, for example, could seldom be recycled to again serve similar
use. But that is changing thanks to innovative research. There is today a lot
of attention on the numerous additives used in plastics and how they withstand
the harsh conditions of temperature during recycling. Speciality chemical
companies are also developing performance chemicals that enable recycled resins
to perform just as affectively as virgin ones.
Polyolefins – the largest category of products – are mostly pure
hydrocarbons (barring the additives and fillers used). From an elemental
perspective they are no different from crude oil and can be used for generating
energy in well-designed plants, with negligible environmental impact. But
recycling plastics to recover their energy value should be the last resort.
From a value retention perspective and from an environmental one, a better
option could be sequestering them into articles of long-term use. There have,
for example, been several initiatives to use waste thermoplastics and even
waste tyres for road laying by incorporating them in a ground state into hot
bitumen. Trials have shown that roads containing such polymers last longer and
provide better grip for vehicles.
It would be naïve to believe that this alone would solve the
plastics waste problem, but recycled plastics can serve several other uses as
well.
Collective & collection efforts needed
The plastics sector is a young industry overall. Plastics only
became widespread in the 1950s, and reutilisation strategies for waste plastics
were only introduced in 1990s, yet both the collection systems and technical
feasibility have developed enormously in the intervening period. It can be
safely assumed that recycling rates for all plastics will continue to rise in
the years to come, as there is strong demand for recyclate for both
environmental and economic reasons.
But the sedate pace of progress seen in the past may not be
enough for the future. It is clear that the topic of plastics is coming to a
head. The key question is, will societies gradually reject the material due to
its negative effects and forgo its many benefits, or will they carve out a
future for it characterised by innovation, redesign and harmonisation, based on
circular economy principles? The answer will in large measure be determined by
the initiatives taken collectively by all stakeholders in the industry.
Design of materials, packaging formats and delivery models will
be essential to mobilise the transition towards a New Plastics Economy, and the
entire plastic packaging value chain – from packaging designers at the
beginning of the chain to recyclers at the end – will need to be involved.
Another critical short-term action needed, given the high levels of leakage
into the natural environment, is to deploy basic collection and management
infrastructure.
Sourcing virgin feedstocks from renewable sources would also accelerate
the transition to the New Plastics Economy by helping decouple plastics from
fossil feedstocks.
Ravi Raghavan
CHWKLY 17APR18
No comments:
Post a Comment