Global Commitment 2020: Progress made, but acceleration needed to meet targets on reducing plastic waste and pollution

The Ellen MacArthur Foundation and UN Environment Programme (UNEP) have published their second annual New Plastics Economy Global Commitment Progress report, together with detailed data on the progress of the individual business and government signatories.

The Global Commitment 2020 Progress Report shows there has been significant progress in two key areas: the incorporation of recycled content in plastic packaging, and the phase-out of the most commonly identified problematic items, such as PS and PVC packaging, undetectable carbon black pigments, and single-use plastic bags and straws.

However, there has been limited progress on increasing recyclability of plastic packaging and on reducing the need for single-use packaging altogether: progress on shifting towards reusable packaging is limited, and elimination efforts remain focused on a relatively small set of materials and formats.

There are also significant differences in the rate of progress between signatories – while some have taken big steps forward, others have shown little to no progress against quantitative targets.

It is encouraging to see initial progress being made by signatories in year one after signing the Global Commitment, but a substantial acceleration of progress will be needed to achieve the 2025 targets.

“This report shows that leading governments are taking action, in particular on addressing some of the most commonly identified problematic items, but increasingly also through the deployment of more comprehensive policy approaches, for example combining extended producer responsibility, fiscal incentives, and public procurement policies. We call on all governments to follow their lead, and come together at the global level, through the UN Environment Assembly, to work on an international framework for action, building on the vision for a circular economy for plastic,” said Ligia Noronha, Director of UNEP’s Economy Division.

Key Findings

• Recycled content in plastic packaging grew by 22% year on year, to 6.2% on average for packaged goods and retail signatories.
• 31% of packaged goods and retail signatories — 18 in total — now have targets in place to reduce virgin plastic in packaging or reduce plastic packaging altogether.
• Elimination efforts remain focused on a relatively small set of materials and formats and are being delivered primarily through substitution towards other plastics or paper, or lightweighting (often by reducing thickness, for example), rather than by reducing the need for single-use packaging altogether.
• Reusable packaging increased marginally from the prior year (by 0.1 percentage points) and remains low at 1.9% for packaged goods and retail signatories, while we do see a further increase in reuse pilotting activity.
• Substantial investments towards achieving the 2025 targets have been reported, bringing the total amount publicly committed by Global Commitment signatories to more than USD 10 billion.
• We see substantial differences in progress between signatories – while some have taken big steps forward, others have shown little to no progress against quantitative targets

The Ellen MacArthur Foundation and UN Environment Programme have made four calls to action that are vital to eradicating plastic pollution.

Read the New Plastics Economy Global Commitment Progress report. 

Original source: UNEP