SUP-Directive
Single use plastics, most of which come from packaging, is an ever larger source of the plastic soup. The European Union intends to take action and has thus compiled the SUP-Directive.
Polluter Pays Principle
The costs of environmental problems are passed on to the community or to later generations unless the ‘polluter pays’ principle is applied. The basis of this principle is that someone is financially responsible for the elimination of the pollution they cause. Governments use policy-based financial instruments built on this principle, such as an environmental tax or Ecotax. All the plastic waste that ends up on the streets or in the oceans does not yet have a price tag. Exactly because environmental damage is not included in the price of plastic, plastic is far too cheap. And because it is so cheap, it is sold and used in great quantities. That, in turn, leads to even more pollution.
Polluter pays principle: the packaging tax
In the Netherlands, companies that use more than 50,000 kilograms of single-use packaging material must pay a fee. With this money, the packaging industry finances collection and recycling. However, the agreements laid down in the Raamovereenkomst verpakkingen en verpakkingsbelasting (Framework Agreement for Packaging and Packaging Tax) are not aimed at tackling garbage in the environment. Only € 20 million per year is available for this, just over € 1 per inhabitant. Although a lot of plastic is collected separately and processed thanks to the packaging tax, this has hardly any effect on the reduction of litter.
Paying for plastic bags
One of the most common example of the ‘polluter pays’ principle applies to plastic bags. Since 2016, retailers in the Netherlands are no longer allowed to give away free plastic bags; customers must either pay for one or take along their own bag. After a year, research showed that the litter deriving from plastic bags was reduced by around 70%. In the UK, a 5p charge on each plastic bag led to an 85% reduction within six months. In order to prevent plastic litter, taxing the packaging that is most commonly found in the environment would appear to be a particularly effective measure. However, governments rarely apply his financial instrument. In the Netherlands, for example, there is no levy on plastic-packed on-the-go products, and that is precisely the kind of packaging that is often found on the street.
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Precautionary Principle
What measures already exist to prevent ocean pollution, and how can they be reinforced?
Extended producer responsibility
The extended producer responsibility applies when it comes to plastic packaging and littering. However, little has been done so far.
Source of Plastic Pollution
Single-use plastic ban is one of the ways to tackle the source of plastic pollution, but is it enough? Learn more about ways to stop plastic at its source.
