Grinding to a halt – China bans imports of waste

The UK has declared war on single-use plastic. Reusable coffee cups are everywhere, with Imperial’s cafes charging those without one an extra 15p, and plastic bags and straws are looked upon with horror. The government is riding this wave of public opinion, having imposed a 5p levy on the former in 2015, and is in the process of implementing an outright ban on the latter, as well as a possible charge on plastic takeaway containers. But the newfound revulsion at these items is primarily because they are single-use; aren’t we free to purchase all the recyclable plastic we want, so long as we do the honourable thing and put it in the appropriate bin – a win-win for the environment and our conscience? As of 2018, it turns out the answer is no.

Since 1992, China has imported 45% of all plastic waste intended for recycling for use in its manufacturing industry, taking two-thirds of the UK’s waste since 2012, but in January 2018 it announced it will stop doing this by the end of the year. The consequences of this are enormous, as the non-exported waste may be diverted to landfill, making putting it in a recycling bin nothing but an empty gesture of goodwill with no positive environmental impact. China has also increased quality controls for other waste such as cardboard, which could cause local authorities to reduce their collection of certain types of waste due to the content of the bins failing to meet these standards, thereby becoming economically unviable.

The very fact that the UK and many other countries such as Japan, Australia, and the US export the majority of their waste abroad may come as a surprise; few of us think about what happens to our plastic bottle or food packaging after we ‘recycle’ it. Apparently, the UK government doesn’t either, as there appears to be no backup plan to deal with the restriction of the world’s largest market for waste, despite prior warnings that such a situation may occur. Nevertheless, this is an opportunity for the UK to develop its recycling infrastructure by investing in reprocessing facilities, albeit on a much shorter timescale than the government might like.

It is also an opportunity to adopt an even more intolerant attitude towards plastic waste, even when it is bound for the recycling bin. Single-use food packaging makes up 89% of exported plastics, and while this magical material has revolutionised our ability to store and transport food due to its low cost and physical and chemical properties, its use must be minimised. There has recently been an increase in popularity in some circles of shops offering products plastic-free, but there is a need for major retailers to step up and do the same, as problems of this magnitude require a change of public behaviour only achievable if plastic-free packaging is commonplace and cheap. Retailers are highly receptive to public opinion, exercised through our spending habits, so we the consumers, armed with the knowledge that a large proportion of plastic is now effectively non-recyclable, must make an effort to minimise our purchase of it. Exactly how to go about this is another story – make sure to check back over the following weeks to find out more!