plastics ban and its recycling

7/29/2019 Plastics ban and its recycling

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Submitted By:

Krutik V. Patel

Fenil Bharwad

Subject

Research Methodology

Term Paper

Plastics ban and its recycling

Submitted to:

Mr. Sreekant Iyengar

21 January 2013


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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

The usage of plastic bag has causes both convenience and inconvenience in our daily lives. It

causes environmental hazards as most plastic bags are not bio-degradable. Hygiene and

wastage issue are also being alarmed as plastic bag can be seen littered all across the globe.

Usage of plastic bag for hot edible items not only causes such inconveniences but it may also

cause health hazards of the consumer. Plastic bag is commonly used to pack hot edible items

in hawker stall, food court and coffee shop. The danger arises when wrong type of plastic is

being used as chemical migration between plastic and food can be maximized by temperature

and content as there is direct contact between the hot edible items and the plastic itself.

According to green marketing concept, stakeholders such as the consumer play a key role in

the environmental and health consciousness. Business owner will have to align with

consumers opinion on green issue so that their business will not be affected. Therefore, this

study is being conducted in order to understand the consumer perception based on usage of

plastic carry bag. Factors influencing the perception and practice will also be identified so

that solutions can be given to raise public awareness and minimize usage.


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INTRODUCTION

In the coming years and into the 21st century, plastics gained further importance in life. Both

consumers and industrial users expand their demand for plastics, both in terms of quantity

and quality. The coming decade is a crucial period for the plastics industry in meeting this

demand. At the same time, the rapidly increasing waste burden of plastics has to be

minimized. At present, around 50 to 60 percent of waste plastics is left uncollected or is

dumped in an uncontrolled manner on land, in rivers or in the sea. This requires intense

efforts on the part of the waste management sectors as well as the plastics recycling industry.

The recycling sector can reduce the burden of solid waste by creating a market for recovered

materials and simultaneously narrowing the gap between the demand and supply of plastic

resources.

For several years, debate has wide spread about the plastic PVC Industry and pursues a ban;

industry aims to improve its environmental performance and believes there is no reason for

taking such measures against their material.

LITERATURE REVIEW

A variety of strategy books provide useful information needed to develop a business plan

strategy for an entrant in a mature market. Robert Grant, in his book published in 2005,

Contemporary Strategy Analysis, believes that strategy is about winning. Creating a

strategy is a key factor to a business success. His book, through a theoretical and practical

approach, offers tools for identifying factors that determine the success of a business. It

provides a useful framework for an industry analysis and 8 competitive advantage analyses.Grant also offers a valuable insight into diversification strategies and organizational models.

Besanko, Dranove, Shanley and Shaefer, in their book Economics of Strategy, published in

2007, provide steps to perform an industry analysis. The five force framework will be used to

do the industry analysis. Each of the five forces will create major threats to the business

profits.

In 2005, Canada stood out as an excellent nation in the recycling industry in comparison to

the US. It was focused on having a foundation of a producer responsibility model that forces


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packagers to pay for a fair amount of municipal recycling programs, which displayed much

innovation in the sector. Ontarios government has been building more of recycling costs

into the product and requires packaging companies to pay 50 percent of the price tag to

support recycling programs in 2005 (Toloken, 2005). From a 16 percent recycling rate in

2003, five years later, Ontario has managed to raise the rate to 38 percent (Gillespie, 2008).

However, the provinces goal three years ago was to reach 60 percent (Toloken, 2005). This

has proven to be more difficult than it seemed. (BIKAW).

Final demand for plastics is growing rapidly. The domestic primary plastics industry is unable

to meet this demand, as a result of which China is highly dependent on imports of plastics. At

the same time, waste management in Chinese cities is incapable of dealing effectively with

plastics waste. This effect is exacerbated by the fact that less waste plastics are formally

recovered because government involvement is less. (Beukering, May 1999)

In China, two types of recyclers are distinguished: the ones using domestic waste plastics and

the ones using imported waste plastics. The two types have different characteristics. Labour

productivity of the importing recycler is higher due to better Quality inputs, scale of operation

as well as the higher capital intensity of production. (Beukering, May 1999)

Case Study:

Mumbais Experience with the Recycled Plastic Manufacture and Usage Rules, 1999

The Recycled Plastic Manufacture and Usage Rule of 1999 was the first central government

rule on plastic waste in India. It was passed to control the packaging of food products in

recycled plastics and to manage the littering problem. The objective of the Rule was

supposedly to protect human health from the risk of coloured plastic bags and to minimize

the littering problem by encouraging reuse and recycling of polybags. The Rule was based on

the recommendations of the Plastic Waste Management Task Force.

There were three main specifications in the Rule:

The use of recycled and virgin coloured polybags for non-food applications wasallowed but for packaging food items was discouraged

All carry bags of size less than 20 microns were banned The guidelines for the recycling of plastics were made mandatory


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The impact of the Recycling Rule on the city of Mumbai can be understood fully by

examining the table 4 below. The table presents the effectiveness of the Rule in handling key

issues of concern of polybags. It is pretty evident that various critical issues were not be

addressed by the Rule despite its effective enforcement. (Ministry Of Environment and

Forests, 1997)

Table: Impact of Recycling Rule in Mumbai City

Critical IssuesHas the Union legislation managed to

address the following problems

Choked Drains No

Choked Soil No

Dying Animals No

Decreased health risk to the

citizens by dyes and pigmentsNo

Improve collection and disposal of polybags No

Improve recycling practices No

Encouraging substitutes to

PolybagsNo

Increase awareness of the

Citizens

Yes to a limited extent to move

from coloured plastic bags to

colourless plastic bags

Increased reuse of the polybags

by the citizensNo

Source: Analyzing Plastic Waste Management in IndiaCase study of Polybags and PET

bottles, Narayan, P. (2001) (P, 2001)

BACKGROUND READING

Plastics are significant and make a positive contribution with regards to packaging in various

ways. Plastic bottles, plastic tubs, and plastic bags all have the potential to be recycled;

however, what can or cannot be recycled depends on the municipalities. There are people,

who are of the belief that recycling uses more energy than it saves. This was stated by a

columnist, John Tierney, who had posted in a New York Times Magazine an article stating


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that recycling is garbage. Mandatory recycling programs, he wrote, offer mainly

short-term benefits to a few groups - politicians, environmental organizations and waste

handling corporations - while diverting money from genuine social and environmental

problems. Recycling may be the most wasteful activity in modern America The

environmental groups were quick to point out the benefits of recycling, especially on the

assertions that recycling was doubling energy consumption and pollution, while costing

taxpayers more money than disposing of plain old garbage. Municipal recycling programs

they asserted do reduce pollution and the use of virgin resources, while decreasing the sheer

amount of garbage and the need for landfill space. (BIKAW)

Plastic waste is a major environmental and public health problem in India, particularly in the

urban areas. Plastic shopping or carrier bags are one of the main sources of plastic waste in

our country. Plastic bag wastes blocks drains and gutters, and are a threat to aquatic life when

they find their way to water bodies, and can cause livestock deaths when the livestock

consume them. Furthermore, when filled with rainwater, plastic bags become breeding

grounds for mosquitoes, which cause malaria. In addition, plastics take many years to

degrade and hence pose a disposal challenge.

We have become so familiar to the everywhere presence of plastic that it is difficult to

imagine life when woods and metals were the primary materials used for consumer products.

Plastic has become prevalent because it is inexpensive and it can be engineered with a wide

range of properties. Plastics are strong but lightweight, resistant when degraded by chemicals,

sunlight, and bacteria, and are thermally and electrically insulating. Plastics have become a

critical material in the modern economy; the annual volume of plastics produced exceeds that

volume of steel. The world's annual consumption of plastic materials has increased from

around 5 million tonnes in the 1950s to nearly 100 million tonnes today.

AIM / OBJECTIVES

The main research problem is to study the impact of ban on plastics on its usage, environment

and recycling industries.

The objectives of plastic recycling are summarised below:

1. To determine the type, nature and estimated volumes of waste to be generated


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2. To identify any environmental impacts from the generation of waste at the site3. To categorise waste material for disposal considerations i.e. public filling areas /

landfill.

TECHNICAL DETAILS

Plastics are organic polymeric materials consisting of giant organic molecules. Plastic

materials can be formed into shapes by one of a variety of processes, such as extrusion,

moulding, casting or spinning. Modern plastics (or polymers) possess a number of extremely

desirable characteristics; high strength to weight ratio, excellent thermal properties, electrical

insulation, resistance to acids, alkalis and solvents, etc.

These polymers are made of a series of repeating units known as monomers. The structure

and degree of polymerization of a given polymer determine its characteristics. Linear

polymers (a single linear chain of monomers) and branched polymers (linear with side

chains) are thermoplastic, which are they softening when heated. Cross-linked polymers (two

or more chains joined by side chains) are thermosetting, that is, they harden when heated.

Thermoplastics make up 80% of the plastics produced today. (Development)

polypropylene (PP) used in food containers, battery cases, bottle crates, automotiveparts and fibres

high density polyethylene (HDPE) used in piping, automotive fuel tanks, bottles,toys

low density polyethylene (LDPE) used in plastic bags, cling film, flexible; containers polyethylene terephthalate (PET) used in bottles, carpets and food packaging;

Source: (Development)


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Types of Plastics

Source: (XIV-Environment-E-Plastic recycling)


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Why recycling plastic?

In western countries, plastic consumption has grown at a tremendous rate over the

past two or three decades. In the consumer societies of Europe and America, scarce

petroleum resources are used for producing an enormous variety of plastics for an even wider

variety of products. Many of the applications are for products with a life-cycle of less than

one year and then the vast majority of these plastics are then discarded. In most instances

reclamation of this plastic waste is simply not economically practical.

In industry (the automotive industry for example) there is a growing move towards

reuse and reprocessing of plastics for economic, as well as environmental reasons, with many

examples of companies developing technologies and strategies for recycling of plastics. Not

only is plastic made from a non-renewable resource, but it is generally non-biodegradable (or

the biodegradation process is very slow). This means that plastic litter is often the most

objectionable kind of litter and will be visible for weeks or months, and waste will sit in

landfill sites for years.

Although there is also a rapid growth in plastics consumption in the developing world,

plastics consumption per capita in developing countries is much lower than in theindustrialized countries. These plastics are, however, often produced from expensive

imported raw materials. There is a much wider scope for recycling in developing countries

due to several factors

Innovative use of scrap machinery often leads to low entry costs for processing Labour costs are lower. In many countries there is an existing culture of reuse and recycling, with the associated

system of collection, sorting, cleaning and reuse of waste or used materials. Low cost raw materials give an edge in the competitive manufacturing world Transportation costs are often lower, with hand or ox carts often being used


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Plastics Recycling Process (Plastics Recycling)

The recycling of plastics is carried out in a five step process.

Step 1- Plastics collection

This is done through roadside collections, special recycling bins and directly from industries

that use a lot of plastic.

Step 2 - Manual sorting

At this stage nails and stones are removed, and the plastic is sorted into three types: PET,

HDPE and 'other'.

Step 3 - Chipping

The sorted plastic is cut into small pieces ready to be melted down.

Step 4 - Washing

This stage removes contaminants such as paper labels, dirt and remnants of the product

originally contained in the plastic.

Step 5 - Pelleting

The plastic is then melted down and extruded into small pellets ready for reuse.

LAW Source: (Forests, 2011)

In exercise of the powers conferred under Rule 4(b) of The Plastic Waste (Management and

Handling) Rules 2011, framed under The Environment (Protection) Act, 1986, Municipality

shall act as Prescribed Authority for enforcement of the provisions of these rules relating to

the use, collection, segregation, transportation and disposal of the plastic waste, under his

jurisdiction and following the Rules the Bye-Laws are as follows:

1. During the course of manufacture, stocking, distribution, sale and use of carry bags and

sachets, the following conditions shall be fulfilled, namely:-

(a) Carry bags shall either be in natural shade (Colourless) which is without any added

pigments or made using only those pigments and colourants which are in conformity with


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Indian standard: IS : 9833: 1981 titled as List of pigments and colourants for use in plastics in

contact with foodstuffs, pharmaceuticals and drinking water, as amended from time to time.

(b) No person shall use carry bags made of recycled plastics or compostable plastics for

storing, carrying, dispensing or packaging food stuffs;

(c) No person shall manufacture, stock, distribute or sell any carry bag made of virgin or

recycled or compostable plastic, which is less than 40 microns in thickness.

(d) Sachets using plastic material shall not be used for storing, packing or selling gutkha,

tobacco and pan masala;

(e) Recycled carry bags shall conform to the Indian standard IS 14534:1998 titled as

Guidelines for Recycling of Plastic, as amended from time to time;

(f) Carry bags made from compostable plastics shall conform to the Indian Standard: IS/ISO

17088:2008 titled as specifications for Compostable plastics, as amended from time to time;

(g) Plastic material, in any form, shall not be used in any package for packing gutkha, pan

masala and tobacco in all forms.

3. In respect of Marking or Labelling it shall be ensured that: -

(a) each plastic carry bag and multilayered plastic pouch or sachet shall have the following

information printed in English or in local language, namely:-

(i) Name, registration number of manufacturer and thickness in case of carry bag.

(b) each recycled carry bag shall bear a label or a mark recycled and shall conform to theIndian Standard : IS 14534: 1998 titled as Guidelines for Recycling of Plastics , as amended

from time to time;

4. For the purpose of Registration of Manufacturers and Recyclers it shall be ensured that: -

(a) any person recycling or proposing to recycle carry bags or multilayered plastic pouch or

sachet or any plastic waste shall apply to the SPCB or PCC for grant of registration or

renewal of registration for the recycling unit using Form 2 appended to these rules;


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(b) no person shall manufacture plastic carry bags, multilayered plastic pouch or sachet or

recycle plastic carry bags or multilayered plastic pouch or sachet or any plastic waste without

obtaining registration certificate from the State Pollution Control Board or Pollution Control

Committee, as the case may be, prior to the commencement of its production;

5. Besides no carry bag shall be made available free of cost by retailers to consumers. The

minimum price for carry bags depending upon their quality and size which covers their

material and waste management costs in order to encourage their re-use so as to minimize

plastic waste generation. The price of the carry bag shall not be less than Re. 1.00 which shall

be realized from the customers.

6. For effective control of use of unauthorized carry bags, Pollution Cost will be realized inthe following manner as notified in Notification No. EN/355/1C-03/2008 dt. 18.02.2008

issued by Principal Secretary to the Government of West Bengal, Dept. of Environment and

Chairman, State Plastic Management Committee, this municipality shall realize the cost as

follows: -

a. In respect of shop owners Rs. 500.00

b. In respect of users Rs. 50.00

9. As per Section 340(f) of The West Bengal Municipal Act 1993 no person shall use sale

and distribute plastic within this municipal area or throw in public streets and tanks, whether

private or public and defile water of public and private tanks.

Source: (Forests, 2011)


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DATA INTERPRETATION

Customers Questionnaire responses

2. Why do you prefer to use the plastic product(s) especially plastic carry bags?


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Of the all respondents, the largest proportion of them (68%) used plastic bags in high

frequency as compared to others. These results revealed that majority of the respondents in

each category use plastic bags in their daily life. The results also indicated that usage of

plastic bags is high among residents.

Of all respondents, only 16%, 10% of them used burying and burning, respectively, as

means of post-use disposal of plastic bags. Most of these respondents 61% used open

dumping. It is a fact that burning can help to get rid of plastic bag wastes or to reduce the

volumes of these wastes in the environment. However, this burning should not be encouraged

for several reasons such as greenhouse gas emissions that cause climate change and

release of toxic organic compounds into the environment that cause different health


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risks, such as respiratory health problems. Thus, the public should be educated or informed

regarding the impact of burning of plastic bag wastes. Burying was mentioned as one of the

commonly used disposal practice for disposing of plastic bag wastes. However, this method

should not be considered as an alternative means to avoid problems associated with plastic

bags. This is because the plastic wastes have potentials to leach their chemical

components and toxins into soil and water sources, which can be passed to humans,

resulting in serious health hazards.

Retailers Questionnaire responses


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ALTERNATIVES

Some states in India have introduced incremental regulations toward the control of plastic

bags. Himachal Pradesh, for example, banned bags made of non-biodegradable material of

thickness less than 70 microns and size less than 18 X 12 inches in 2003. Violations carry

fines of up to INR 100,000 or seven years in jail. Similarly, the states of Maharashtra, Punjab,

Kerala, Meghalaya and Goa have also prescribed norms regarding the thickness of plastic

bags varying between 30 and 50 microns. The Government of West Bengal has banned the

manufacture, use, storage and sale of plastic bags of thickness below 40 microns and size

lower than16 X 12 inches. The governments of Gujarat, Orissa and Goa have banned the use

of plastic bags in certain religious and tourist areas such as Ambaji, Dakor and Somnath in

Gujarat, the municipal area of Puri and Konark in Orissa, and the beaches in Goa.

More recently, Chandigarh in 2008, Rajasthan in 2010 and Haryana in 2011 have imposed a

complete ban on plastic bag use. Faced with a ban, shops in these states have responded

mainly in two ways. The sellers of high-value goods such as garments and electronics have

started providing their customers fiber-cloth bags free of charge. Those selling lower value

goods such as grocery stores have started a deposit-refund system where customers deposit

some amount for a cloth bag, which is refunded when they return the cloth bag. Some shops

are also offering 1% cash subsidies (on the value of purchases) for consumers using their own

bags.


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The Delhi High Court in August 2008 directed the state to raise the minimum thickness of

plastic carrier bags from 20 to 40 microns. Somewhat surprisingly, the Delhi State

government not only passed legislation to this effect fairly quickly but, in January 2009,

ordered a complete ban on the use of all plastic bags within market areas. De jure, anyone

found guilty of breaking the ban faces a maximum penalty of one hundred thousand rupees,

or five years imprisonment, or both. (Gupta, 2011)

Reusable Bags: A bag with handles that is specifically designed and manufacturedfor multiple reuse

Recyclable paper carry bags Cotton bags Jute bags

CONCLUSION

The use of plastic today is widespread and it minimizes the use of wood, metals etc., thus

reducing the stress on natural resources. If plastics are not used with carefulness, it causes

considerable environmental problems such as pollution and impacts on health and aesthetics.The management of plastic waste is difficult but an achievable possibility provided we

simplify the collection and separation of plastics from other waste materials and subject it to

recycling as far as possible. Along with this, considerable awareness has to be created to

reuse the plastic materials as far as possible, reduce its use wherever possible and replace it

with alternative materials such as clothes, jutes, paper etc.


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REFERENCES

Beukering, P. v. (May 1999).Plastics Recycling in China. China: Institute for Environmental

Studies.

BIKAW, J. R.PLASTIC RECYCLING : IS IT WORTH IT ? . ATHABASCA UNIVERSITY.

Development, T. S. (n.d.). RECYCLING PLASTICS.

Forests, M. o. (2011, February 4). Plastic Waste (Management and Handling) (Amendment)

Rules, 2011. New Delhi, New Delhi, India: Ministry of Environment and Forest.

Gupta, K. (2011). Consumer Responses to Incentives to Reduce Plastic Bag Use: Evidence

from a Field Experiment in Urban India. Kathmandu, Nepal: South Asian Network for

Development and Environmental Economics (SANDEE).

Ministry Of Environment and Forests, G. o. (1997). The Report of the National Plastic Waste

Management Task Force.

P, N. (2001).Analzing Plastic Waste Management in India.

Plastics Recycling. (n.d.).XIV-Environment-E-Plastic recycling.

XIV-Environment-E-Plastic recycling. (n.d.).

http://www.cwc.org/plastic/pl991rpt.pdfwww.cleanerproduction.net

Plastics Recycling Primer
http://www.cwc.org/plastic/pl991rpt.pdfhttp://www.cwc.org/plastic/pl991rpt.pdfhttp://www.cwc.org/plastic/pl991rpt.pdf


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Customers Questionnaire on Plastic ban and its usage

Profiles of respondents

Name:_____________________________________________

Sex: Male ____ Female _____

Age: 40 years_____

Educational background

Illiterate ____ Primary education_____ Higher School education______ Graduation_______

Occupation: Student ______ Government employee ________Private business _________

Others (Please, specify) _______

1. Do you ask for plastic carry bags while shopping?Yes_______ No_______

2. How much you are willing to pay for plastic carry bags if they are charged?1 Rs. _______ 2 Rs.___________ 3 Rs.___________ 4 Rs.__________

3. Why do you prefer to use the plastic product(s) especially plastic carry bags?They are cheap _____ They are light in weight _____ They are easily available ____

Lack of alternative materials _______ Others (Please, specify) ___

4. How you do dispose the plastic bag waste of the plastic materials?Open dumping _________Burying __________ Burning _______ __

Others (Please, specify) ____

5. Do you think that plastic carry bag wastes cause problems?Yes _______ No _______ No idea ___________

6. Have you heard environmental impacts of plastic carry bag wastes on environment?


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Yes _______ No _______ No idea ___________

7. Should plastic bags have a reminder to reuse or recycle printed on them?Yes_______ No_______

8. Do you use in-store recycling bins for plastic bags?Yes_______ No_______

9. Should stores offer take back programs for plastic bags?Yes_______ No_______

10.Should municipalities be required to provide depot or collection services for plasticbags?

Yes_______ No_______

11.According to your opinion, should the utilization of plastic bags be continued ordiscontinued?

Should be continued ___________ Should be discontinued __________________

12.If your answer in question number 10 is should be discontinued, who is responsibleto do so?

Municipality _______ NGOs __________ Government ______ Environmental

agencies ___________The community itself _________Others (Please, specify)

___________________

13.If you say plastic bags should not be used, what alternatives can be used?Paper bags ___________ Fiber bags _________ ___________ Others (Please,

specify)

__________________

14.Additional comments (if any)________________________________________


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Retailers Questionnaire on Plastic ban and its usage

Profile of respondents

Name:_____________________________________________

Sex: Male ____ Female _____

Age: 40 years______

Educational background

Illiterate ____ Primary education_____ Higher School education______ Graduation_______

Occupation: Grocery shop________ Tea stall _________

Eatery lorry ________ others (Please, specify) _______

1. Are you giving plastic carry bags to customers?Yes_______ No_______

2. Why do you prefer to use the plastic product(s) especially plastic carry bags?They are cheap ____ They are light in weight _____ They are easily available ______

Lack of alternative materials _______ others (Please, specify) ______

3. Are you giving them plastic carry bags on single purchase of product?Yes_______ No_______

4.

Are you charging for the plastic carry bag?Yes_______ No_______

5. If yes, then how much?1 Rs.______ 2 Rs.______ others (Please, specify) _______

6. Do you think that plastic carry bag wastes cause problems?Yes _______ No _______ No idea ___________


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7. Have you heard environmental impacts of plastic carry bag wastes on environment?Yes _______ No _______ No idea ___________

8. Do you about ban by government on plastic carry bags?Yes _______ No _______ No idea ___________

9. According to your opinion, should the utilization of plastic carry bags be continued ordiscontinued?

Should be continued ___________ Should be discontinued __________________

10.If your answer in question number 9 is should be discontinued, who is responsibleto do so?

Municipality _______ NGOs __________ Government _________ Environmental

agencies __________ The community itself _______

Others (Please, specify) ___________________

11.If you say plastic carry bags should not be used, what alternatives can be used?Paper bags ___________ Fiber bags _________ Cloth bags ___________

Others (Please, specify)__________

12.Additional comments (if any) ________________________________________

plastics ban and its recycling

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