CEBU CITY – Recycling all mismanaged plastic wastes in the Philippines could reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by over 12M tonnes by 2030, revealed a new report from the Circulate Initiative, “The Climate Benefits of Plastic Waste Management in India and Southeast Asia”, outlining crucial insights into the link between plastic waste management and climate change in the Philippines.
Circulate Initiative is a non-profit organization dedicated to solving the ocean plastic pollution challenge in emerging markets.
“Ongoing negotiations for the international legally binding instrument on plastic pollution are putting the spotlight on the importance of circular economy solutions. Our research demonstrates that investing in effective plastic waste management and recycling can shift the dial to tackle plastic pollution and climate change simultaneously,” The Circulate Initiative’s Research Director, Umesh Madhavan said.
The report draws on data from the latest edition of The Circulate Initiative’s Plastic Lifecycle Assessment Calculator for the Environment and Society (PLACES), the first open-access climate impact calculator that tracks the GHG emissions, energy and water consumption of plastic waste management and recycling solutions across South and Southeast Asia.
The findings reveal that investing in plastic waste management and recycling can significantly shift the dial when it comes to reaching the Philippines’ climate goals. In fact, recycling all mismanaged plastic waste can reduce GHG emissions by 12.2 million tonnes, the equivalent of taking over 2.7 million cars off the road for a year.
According to Circulate Initiative, the report illustrates the potential of investing in effective plastic waste management and recycling across six regional markets, including the Philippines, to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and combat climate change.
A global hotspot for plastic pollution leakage due to insufficient infrastructure, accurate data on plastic waste management solutions in the Philippines will be crucial to inform action plans in addressing plastic pollution and climate change, the report reads.
The report has key takeaways
Recycling all mismanaged plastic waste in the Philippines by 2030 can reduce GHG emissions by 12.2 million tonnes, equivalent to taking over 2.7 million cars off the road for a year. Recycling 100 percent of the polyethylene terephthalate (PET) consumed annually in the Philippines can result in more than 500,000 tonnes of GHG emissions reduction.
Open burning is the primary carbon footprint hotspot associated with plastic waste treatment in the Philippines, accounting for 86 percent. Diverting just one tonne of plastic waste from open burning towards proper collection and recycling can result in avoiding more than three tonnes of GHG emissions.
The report revealed that recycling all mismanaged plastic waste across India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, the Philippines and Vietnam would lead to 229 million tonnes in GHG emissions reduction by 2030, the equivalent of shutting down 61 coal-fired power plants for a year.
Collaborative research across Asia for PLACES
Developed in collaboration with the Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR), PLACES now cover four additional markets, Malaysia, Thailand, the Philippines and Vietnam, and provides updated data for India and Indonesia.
A*STAR’s Singapore Institute of Manufacturing Technology (SIMTech) contributed as the research partner for the study and quantified the environmental impact of end-of-life pathways for plastic waste.
Since its launch in 2021, PLACES has been used by corporations, investors, recyclers, waste management service providers and city planners to generate market-specific data to quantify the environmental impact of waste management and recycling interventions.
“With the addition of new markets, PLACES will support a broader scope of investors, local governments and corporations in the region to assess opportunities in the plastics circular economy based on their environmental impact,” Madhavan noted.
The Circulate Initiative and The PLACES
The Circulate Initiative is a non-profit organization that works to solve the plastic pollution challenge and build circular and equitable economies across emerging markets. It delivers cutting-edge research, builds high-impact programs, and drives collective action with industry stakeholders including businesses, investors, and policymakers. For more information, visit: https://www.thecirculateinitiative.org/
The Plastic Lifecycle Assessment Calculator for the Environment and Society (PLACES) is an open-access GHG calculator that tracks the environmental impact of plastic waste management and recycling solutions that prevent plastic pollution in six countries, namely India, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Thailand, and Vietnam.
The tool allows users to assess the environmental impact of plastic waste management, recycling interventions and the extent to which investments in circularity can generate quantifiable climate benefits, specific to the unique characteristics of Asian waste management systems. For more information, please visit: https://www.thecirculateinitiative.org/ghg-calculator. (Photos: Circulate Initiative/Google Images)
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