Australia

Prevention and reduction of plastic waste generation

Charge for single-use plastic products (e.g. shopping bags, straws)

a) 2021 National Plastics Plan – Phase outs

Targeted products:

a) To provide greater clarity to industry, on 15 April 2021 Environment Ministers identified eight problematic and unnecessary single-use plastic product types for industry to phase out nationally by 2025 (or sooner in some cases) under the National Waste Policy Action Plan. The list includes:

• Lightweight shopping bags

· “Degradable” plastics (fragmentable/oxo-degradable)

• Plastic straws

· Plastic utensils and stirrers

• Plastic bowls and plates

· Expanded polystyrene (EPS) consumer food containers (e.g. cups and clamshells)

· EPS consumer goods packaging (loose fill and moulded)

· Microbeads in personal health care products.

We do not see any particular trend

Plan is new. Not yet measured.

Actions for encouraging sustainable / circular product design

a) Australian Circular Economy Hub and Marketplace

b) Plastics Design Summit

c) CSIRO National Circular Economy Roadmap for Plastics, Glass, Paper and Tyres

a) The Australian Government has invested AU$1.6 million through the Environment Restoration Fund to help establish an Australian Circular Economy Hub and Marketplace by end of 2021, designed to be a one-stop-shop for circular economy inspiration, education and implementation in Australia.

b) A Plastics Design Summit will be held for product designers and manufacturers to showcase their sustainable product design.

c) CSIRO’s National Circular Economy Roadmap for Plastics, Glass, Paper and Tyres will be used by governments, industry and researchers to inform future decisions on investment, policy development and research priorities.

We do not see any particular trend

New initiatives. Not yet measured.

Regulation on microplastics

– Voluntary phase-out of microbeads in rinse-off personal care, cosmetic and cleaning products sold in Australia

Brief description:

– A 2020 independent assessment of the voluntary industry-led phase-out of microbeads in rinse-off personal care, cosmetic and cleaning products sold in Australia revealed that 99.3% of the targeted products were microbead free.

We see a positive improvement from last two years

– The peak industry organisation implementing the phase-out will continue to monitor the market to ensure products remain microbead free through their existing monitoring and assurance program.

Numerical data if any:

The assessment found that:

– of the approximately 8100 unique products inspected, 99.3 per cent were microbead-free.

– for the 0.7 per cent of products containing microbeads, facial scrubs, facial cleansers, and face masks were the most common product types using microbeads as an ingredient.

– there were no microbeads present in cleaning products or in oral hygiene products surveyed, such as mouthwash and toothpaste.

Measures

Achievements

Environmentally sound waste management

Enforcement of proper waste management system

(a) Ban on exports of waste plastic, paper, glass and tyres

Brief description:

On 13 March 2020, the Australian Government, along with all states and territories and local governments, agreed to introduce a ban on the export of waste plastic, paper, glass and tyres and that the ban would be phased in over four years, starting with glass on 1 January 2021.

The Recycling and Waste Reduction Act 2020 (the Act) commenced on 16 December 2021.

The Recycling and Waste Reduction Rules (Export–Waste Plastic) Rules 2021 (Rules) were made on 24 May 2021. The Act and Rules regulate export of waste plastic. From 1 July 2021, unsorted mixed waste plastic will no longer be able to be exported from Australia. Exporters of waste plastic that are sorted into single polymer (or processed with other materials into processed engineered fuel) will be required to hold an export licence and declare each consignment of exported plastic. From 1 July 2022, plastics that has been sorted into single polymer will require further processing (for example into flakes or pellets) before it can be exported.

We do not see any particular trend

– From 1 July 2021 Australia will no longer export low-grade mixed plastic; all plastic exports must be single polymer; from 1 July 2022 all plastic exports must be processed into flakes or pellets ready for remanufacture.

Numerical data if any:

– In 2018/19 Australia exported about 150,000 tonnes of low-grade mixed plastic

Prevention of littering, illegal dumping and unintentional leakage of waste into the ocean

(b) 2019 National Action Plan to implement the 2018 National Waste Policy

(c) Australian Recycling Investment Plan

(d) Threat Abatement Plan for the impacts of marine debris on the vertebrate wildlife of Australia’s coasts and oceans

Brief description:

(a) On 8 November 2019, Australian environment ministers agreed to a National Waste Policy Action Plan (the Action Plan) that will drive the implementation of the 2018 National Waste Policy. The Action Plan includes ambitious targets to make Australia a world leader in waste management and recycling, including:

• An 80% ‘recovery’ rate of material across all waste streams

• Significant increases to government procurement of recycled materials

• Phase out problematic and unnecessary plastics by 2025

(b) The Australian Government has committed to a AU$167 million Australian Recycling Investment Plan to increase Australia’s recycling rates and tackle plastic waste and litter, and accelerate work on new recycling schemes. The focus of this Plan is on creating the right investment environment so that new technologies are commercialised, preventing pollution from entering our oceans and creating valuable new products.

The Plan includes AU$100 million through the Clean Energy Finance Corporation to support the manufacture of products using recycled materials (including plastics), AU$20 million through Cooperative Research Centre grants to find new and innovative solutions to plastic recycling and waste, an AU$20 million Product Stewardship Investment Fund to help to fast track new recycling/product stewardship schemes, and AU$16 million toward a Pacific Ocean Litter Project, and more than AU$11 million for community campaigns to reduce litter and clean up beaches and waterways.

(c) Australia is implementing the Threat Abatement Plan for the impacts of marine debris on the vertebrate wildlife of Australia’s coasts and oceans. The plan is available at https://www.environment.gov.au/biodiversity/threatened/publications/tap/marine-debris-2018.

(d) Specific actions in the 2021 National Plastics Plan relating to the prevention of littering, illegal dumping and unintentional leakage into the ocean include:

– Work with industry to fast-track the phase out of particular problematic and unnecessary plastics, and consider regulatory action should the industry phase out not be achieved

– Deliver a Plastic Free Beaches initiative in partnership with Boomerang Alliance to eliinate single-use plastics from Australia’s favourite beaches and support local businesses to switch to alternative products

– Pursue coordinated global action on marine litter and microplastic pollution through a new global agreement

– Work with the textile and whitegoods sectors on an industry-led phase-in of microfibre filters on new residential and commercial washing machines by 1 July 2030.

– Initiate an industry-led cross-sectoral stewardship taskforce to reduce cigarette butt litter in Australia and consider potential stewardship schemes

– Partner with states and territories and the CSIRO on solutions to prevent plastic debris entering the marine environment via stormwater

– Partner with organisations to establish a national monitoring protocol and database for plastic pollution.

– Continue to implement the Threat Abatement Plan for the impacts of marine debris on the vertebrate wildlife of Australia’s coasts and oceans .

– Establish an Indonesia-Australia Systemic Innovation Lab on Marine Plastic Waste under the leadership of the CSIRO and the Indonesian Ministry of Marine Affairs and Fisheries.

– Implement measures to reduce ship-sourced waste in accordance with the International Maritime Organization’s Action Plan to address marine plastic litter from ships

We see a positive improvement from last two years

Others

Measures

Achievements

Check the following actions in your country.

Choose the most appropriate options to describe the achievements attained through the measures selected, using quantitative information if any.

Cleanup of marine plastic litter

Collection of scattered waste on beach

a) Australian Government Ghost Nets Initiative: Indigenous Rangers Coastal Clean-ups Project.

b) Environment Restoration Fund

c) Communities Environment Program

Brief description:

a) As part of the the $14.8 million Australian Government Ghost Nets Initiative, work will be conducted with Indigenous ranger groups to collect data on the source of ghost nets and coordinate retrievals and marine debris beach clean ups in the Gulf of Carpentaria, one of the nation’s hot spots for ghost nets drifting from foreign waters. The Ghost Nets Initiative. The on-ground work will commence from late-2021 to mid-2024.

b) The Australian Government is investing $100 million, over four years from 2019-20 to 2022-23 through the Environment Restoration Fund. Projects delivered under the ERF focus on protecting threatened and migratory species and their habitat across Australia’s coasts, oceans and waterways. ERF grants have been provided for beach and coastline clean-up activities, including AU$300,000 to Clean Up Australia Day and AU$5,000,000 to Conservation Volunteers Australia.

c) The Communities Environment Program is a grant program that supports community-led projects to address local environmental priorities, including litter clean up events.

We see a positive improvement from last two years

Removal of plastic litter from the ocean

a) Australian Government Ghost Nets Initiative

Brief description:

a) The $14.8 million Australian Government Ghost Nets Initiative addresses the challenge of ghost nets and plastic litter in the waters and beaches of the Gulf of Carpentaria. The initiative will be delivered over three years and will include actions targeted at removal of plastic litter from the ocean, including:

i. new technology to better detect, collect and dispose of ghost nets, including satellite tags and funding for the in-water retrieval of ghost nets;

ii. work with Indigenous ranger groups to collect data on the source of ghost nets and coordinate retrievals and marine debris beach clean ups in the Gulf of Carpentaria; and

iii. investment in proactive steps to address the source of the issue with stakeholders and enable further research and coordination.

We see a positive improvement from last two years

Measures

Achievements

Promotion of innovative solutions

Policy actions for encouraging plastic alternatives (e.g. biodegradable plastics, circular product design – including use of recycled materials or closed loop recycling and so on’)

a) A Plastics Design Summit

b) Australian Circular Economy Hub

Brief description:

a) A Plastics Design Summit will be held for product designers and manufacturers to showcase their sustainable product design.

b) The Australian Government has invested AU$1.6 million through the Environment Restoration Fund to help establish an Australian Circular Economy Hub and Marketplace by end of 2021, designed to be a one-stop-shop for circular economy inspiration, education and implementation in Australia.

We do not see any particular trend

Comments:

New initiatives. Not yet measured.

Measures

Achievements

Education and awareness raising

Awareness raising campaigns related to MPL

National level:

a) Australia is implementing the Threat Abatement Plan for the impacts of marine debris on vertebrate wildlife of Australia’s coasts and oceans (TAP).

b) Boomerang alliance

Brief description:

a) The TAP includes a range of management approaches for research and monitoring, public outreach and education, preventing and reducing debris from land-based sources as well as addressing marine-based sources and removing accumulated marine debris from the coastal marine environment.

b) The Department conducted a closed non-competitive ad hoc grant (Jan 2021) to deliver a national Plastic Free Beaches program, which would be an expansion of Boomerang Alliance’s existing Plastic Free Places initiative.

Up to $600,000 (ex GST) in departmental funding over two years, sourced from the $35 million to implement the National Waste Policy Action Plan, has been earmarked to deliver the grant.

A funding agreement was recently finalised with project activities commencing in May 2021.

Through the proposed grant, Australian businesses in selected areas (yet to be identified by Boomerang Alliance) will be supported to transition away from single use plastics to reduce the amount of problematic single-use plastics and packaging that leaks into the environment.

Locations will be selected on the basis that they:

· Are geographic areas that disproportionately contribute to marine plastic litter (e.g. high visitor numbers, density of retail and food outlets offering single use plastic items, proximity to the coast or waterways through which plastic pollution is transported); and

· Demonstrate local community and business support, noting that the program’s success ultimately depends on business and community support

Local level:

Yes

Names of actions:

a) Plastic Free Beaches initiative

Brief description:

Plastic Free Beaches will be delivered in partnership with Boomerang Alliance to eliminate single-use plastics from Australia’s favorite beaches and support local businesses to switch to alternative products, simultaneously raising consumer awareness of the issue.

National level:

We see a positive improvement from last two years

Local level:

We see a positive improvement from last two years

Measures

Achievements

Monitoring & Scientific research on marine plastic litter

Actions for encouraging monitoring / scientific research on plastic flows and ocean surface microplastics

(a) National Waste Reports

(b) Other research

(c) National Environment Science Program

(d) National plastics pollution monitoring protocol and database

Brief description:

(a) Australia’s National Waste Reports describe Australia’s national performance on waste and recycling. The Reports presents data and commentary on waste generation, recovery and fate for all waste streams and various material categories. It also analyses this information by jurisdiction and on a per capita basis. More information is available at:

National Waste Report 2020 | Department of Agriculture, Water and the Environment

(b) Australia is conducting a range of research to better understand marine debris, including marine plastic pollution. Recent CSIRO research indicates that 75% of Australian beach pollution is plastic. This research will assist in setting baselines for marine debris and plastic pollution, allowing this to be tracked over time. For details on CSIRO marine debris research, see https://www.csiro.au/en/Research/OandA/Areas/Marine-resources-and-industries/Marine-debris .

(c) The Australian Government has invested AU$149 million in the second phase of the National Environment Science Program to establish four new multidisciplinary and applied research hubs, including a Marine and Coastal Hub and a Sustainable Communities and Waste Hub. The program provides evidence for the design, delivery and on-ground outcomes for environmental programs, helps decision-makers build resilience and supports positive environmental, social and economic outcomes, including in relation to plastic flows and ocean surface microplastics.

(d) Australia’s 2021 National Plastics Plan includes a commitment for the Australian Government to partner with organisations to establish a national monitoring protocol and database for plastics pollution (currently in the early stages of development).

Engagement in international/regional level actions for encouraging monitoring / scientific research on plastic flows and ocean surface microplastics

(a) Regional engagement

(a) International engagement and commitments

Brief description:

(a) Regional engagement

Under the Australian Government’s AU$167 million Australian Recycling Investment Plan, AU$16 million has been committed to the Pacific Ocean Litter Project to support the Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Program (SPREP) with the implementation of the Pacific Regional Action Plan: Marine Litter 2018-2025. This Project will enable SPREP to assist Pacific island countries refuse, reduce and replace single-use plastics, such as plastic bags, cutlery, food containers and drink bottles, which make up much of the plastic waste in inshore waters and beaches in the Pacific region.

(b) International engagement and commitments

The Australian Government recognises that marine plastic pollution is a global issue requiring a coordinated international response. Australia is a member of the Commonwealth Clean Ocean Alliance, the United Nations Environment Programme Clean Seas Campaign, the G20 Marine Litter Action Plan and G20 Implementation Framework for Actions on Marine Plastic Litter, and the High-Level Panel for a Sustainable Ocean Economy. Under the UN Clean Seas Campaign, Australia has made several public commitments, including packaging targets. Australia is also pursuing improved coordinated global action to address marine plastic pollution including through discussions towards a new global agreement at the United Nations Environment Assembly.

We do not see any particular trend [yet]

Comments:

Programs are commencing with monitoring and evaluation. It is too early to determine a trend.