Plastic ban: Lessons from Karnataka

Although the ban on single-use plastic exists since 2016, Karnataka has failed in executing it, particularly in managing plastic waste. About 400 plastic manufacturing, recycling and ancillary units were closed down after failing pollution norms. “No thought has been put into common treatment plants. As a result, they closed down,” says Vijayakumar, president, of Karnataka State Plastic Association.

The banned items from the central government constitute only 3 per cent of total plastic produced, says Vijayakumar, adding that the state lacks the facility to process it. Other items, like chips packets that are single-use plastics, have been brought under extended producer responsibility (EPR).

Read | Plastic ban: A step forward but no clear roadmap

But the infrastructure to ensure that brands take care of their plastic waste is scarce, claims Vijayakumar. A part of the problem is also the definition of Plastic Waste Processors and Recyclers in the February notification, and the lack of an easy mechanism to integrate informal workers into the chain.

Single-use plastic items that fall under EPR are now collected by Producers, Importers and Brand Owners (PIBOs), and they are given to registered plastic waste processing (PWP) units. Items with remnants of milk, oils and fats etc need specialised industrial chemical processing units that will require effluent treatment plants. However, the state doesn’t have many of these units.

A list provided by the KSPCB shows a processing capacity of 1,88,905 metric tonnes/annum in Karnataka with the 140 existing registered recyclers. Most of them convert plastic waste to granules. It is unclear how many of them can prepare food-grade packaging mandated by the Union government.

Pinky Chandran, a member of Bengaluru-based Solid Waste Management Round Table (SWMRT), flags the issues of problems in the definition of biodegradable and compostable plastics, and the lack of guidelines for biodegradable plastics. SWMRT had sent objections to the Union ministry on the issues that would lead to confusion and cause gaps in the plastic waste handling loop. After this, the clarity on the definition came about in a notification, yet there are no detailed guidelines in place for biodegradable plastics.