Page 64 - Plastics News February 2020

in the news

CPCB says e-tailers must collect Reliance launching new road

plastic waste they generate project to counter plastics
pushback in India

-commerce platforms, Amazon and Flipkart, must
Efulfil their extended producer responsibility under eliance Industries, is launching a project to
the Plastic Waste Management Rules, 2016, and need Ruse plastics in road construction, amid growing
to put in place a system for collecting back the plastic concerns over pollution in the country of 1.3 billion
waste Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) told the whose major cities are often plagued with smog and
National Green Tribunal.The apex pollution monitoring litter. The company will seek to work with India’s
body told the green tribunal that according to provisions
9(2) of the Plastic Waste Management Rules, 2016,
Primary responsibility for collection of used multi-layered
plastic sachet or pouches or packaging is of producers,
importers and brand owners who introduce the products
in the market.” “Amazon Retail India Private Limited and
Flipkart Private limited are involved in packaging and
selling of other companies’ products and thus introducing
plastic packaging in the market. They need to fulfil their
extended producer responsibility under PWM rules and
should obtain registration as brand owner after submitting
proper documents,” it said. The CPCB submission came highway authority and individual states to potentially
in response to a plea filed by a 16-year-old boy, who had supply a plastics-infused mix to make some of the
earlier approached the tribunal to stop e-commerce giants thousands of kilometers of roads India, which uses
from excessive plastic use in their packaging. Aditya about 14 million tonnes of plastic annually, lacks an
Dubey, through his legal guardian, had pleaded the NGT to organized system for management of plastic waste,
direct Amazon and Flipkart to stop excessive use of plastic leading to widespread littering.Prime Minister Narendra
in packaging the goods delivered by the firms.
Modi is urging India to end consumption of single-use
plastics by 2022. But Indians should focus on fighting
pollution, not plastics, executives at Reliance, whose
chairman is Asia’s richest man Mukesh Ambani, said
during the launch event. The company will seek to work
with India’s highway authority and individual states to
potentially supply a plastics-infused mix to make some
of the thousands of kilometers of roads Modi wants to
build to upgrade India’s creaking infrastructure.Light
plastics, the type used as carry bags or snack wrappers,
are typically not viable to recycle and so end up in
landfills, street corners or oceans. Reliance wants to
Single-use plastic is non-biodegradable and ultimately shred these plastics and mix them with bitumen, a
contaminates soil and water,” Dubey highlighted in the formula the conglomerate says is cheaper and longer-
petition. He added the two companies have not made lasting.“(This) can be a game-changing project both
arrangements for either taking back the plastic material or for our environment and our roads,” Vipul Shah, the
ensuring that it is recycled.“Plastic packaging constitutes COO of the petrochemicals business, said at a company
43% of the total plastic waste generated in India and it is petchem plant in the western state of Maharashtra.
imperative that a direction be issued to the respondents Shah was coy on details, saying Reliance had yet to
that they should stop using plastic packaging materials work out the financial fine print in what he stressed
and shift to environment friendly packaging option,” the would be a philanthropic endeavour.
plea had said.

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