New Policy Framework with Plastic Waste Control Plan for Effective Plastic Waste Management

With an increasing use of plastic, considerable plastic waste is generated, threatening the environment and public health. In particular, changes in living patterns in urban areas have significantly impacted the rate at which plastic waste increases every year. Thus, governments in many developed co...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Sustainability 2020-08, Vol.12 (15), p.6049
Main Authors: Shin, Sun-Kyoung, Um, Namil, Kim, Yong-Jun, Cho, Na-Hyeon, Jeon, Tae-Wan
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Construction
Consumption
Developed countries
Economic structure
Environmental impact
Environmental protection
Industrial production
Landfill
Plastic debris
Plastic pollution
Plastics
Polyvinyl chloride
Public health
Recycling
Sustainability
Sustainable development
Urban areas
Waste management
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Summary:With an increasing use of plastic, considerable plastic waste is generated, threatening the environment and public health. In particular, changes in living patterns in urban areas have significantly impacted the rate at which plastic waste increases every year. Thus, governments in many developed countries have implemented numerous policies to reduce plastic waste generation. Among them is the concept of circular economy that aims to protect the environment from plastic pollution and promote growth and innovation in industry and human life through overall changes in designing, producing, using, and recycling plastic products. The Korean government has implemented the Resource Circulation Act (RCA), which includes the concept of circular economy and resource efficiency policy for overall waste management. Following the concept of RCA, the Plastic Waste Control Plan (PWCP) was established for the comprehensive management of plastic waste. Therefore, this study introduces the goals and strategies of PWCP, which has a circulation system of four stages of production, consumption, discharge, and recycling, as well as the major roadblocks in the stages impeding the achievement of the goals and strategies. This study also suggests countermeasures at the government level for solving the major problems in the four stages.
ISSN:2071-1050
2071-1050
DOI:10.3390/su12156049