India needs to act

If the current situation does not change, India could become the largest mismanaged plastic waste generator by 2035

According to The World Business Council for Sustainable Development, India will consume approximately 22 million tonnes of plastic per year by 2022. Ultimately, most of this packaging ends up landfilled or dumped.

To address the problem in time, India is already implementing extended producer responsibility (EPR) for plastics – and Landbell Group, in consortium with BlackForest Solutions, is designing and developing training toolkits on EPR.

The materials will be disseminated among public and private sector stakeholders via pilot trainings and master classes.

The public sector will benefit by acquiring practical knowledge on how to design and enforce EPR regulations and control mechanisms. Public bulk waste generators will receive good preparation to comply with the new regulations, so that they can embrace and lead the change.

Thanks to the master classes, the private sector will also be able to develop and adjust their organizations and logistics to meet the new EPR requirements.

The indirect, long-term outcome of the project will be to support the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change in improving current processes in plastic/packaging production and modifying the existing mechanisms for takeback and reuse of plastic/packaging waste. In turn, this will lay the foundations for the development of a national framework for plastic waste management in India.

The project, which started in February 2022 and will continue through to mid-September, is part of a contract awarded by the German Agency for International Cooperation (GIZ).

Landbell Group and BlackForest Solutions will also leverage their local presence and know-how in India thanks to their recently formed joint venture, Landbell GFS (see previous article here).

If you would like to discuss EPR in India, please contact us.