In India, the revision of existing plastic waste regulations has caused strong protests from the country's plastics industry.
Industry representatives sought the possibility of delaying the implementation of the proposed measures on the grounds of the economic recession caused by the new crown virus. The law proposes to ban plastic handbags and products with a thickness of less than 120 microns in the first stage, and to phase out flexible plastics such as earplugs, balloon sticks, candy bars, ice cream sticks, plastic flags and polystyrene in the second stage. And in the third stage, one-off plastic products, such as plates, cups, glasses, tableware, trays, packaging films for candy boxes, and plastic PVC banners with a thickness of less than 100 microns, will be phased out.
The proposed implementation dates for these measures are September 2021, January 2022, and July 2022.
Plastic manufacturers are particularly reluctant to follow the draft legislation because it proposes to ban plastic handbags and products with a thickness of less than 20 microns.
Prerak Patel, Chairman of the Ahmedabad Plastic Manufacturers Association, said: "In order to manufacture plastic bags over 120 microns, our machines need to be upgraded, which requires a price. Manufacturers will have to invest in upgrading their manufacturing facilities. This will be an additional cost, especially when demand has slowed since the COVID-19 pandemic, making new investments is not feasible. "
He insisted that before these legislative changes, many industries will be forced to reduce their business scale or shut down completely. In the case of Gujarat, India’s fifth largest state, 5% of its 5,000 plastic manufacturing units are expected to face closure, and more companies are expected to suspend operations.
A manufacturer in Ahmedabad stated that investments as a possible solution to the existing waste infrastructure problems will not help support the new legislation.
"Our production costs have almost doubled, thereby increasing the price of the final product. This will also increase the cost of packaging and other materials," Patel said.
