Australia’s Senate inquiry report, No Time to Waste, has revealed that global negotiations aimed at establishing a high-ambition treaty to combat plastic pollution have stalled, undermining hopes for a binding international agreement.
Countries like Australia, which have acknowledged the urgent need to address plastic waste threatening oceans and public health, find themselves hindered by lobbying from major plastic producers.
Despite calls from Australia’s federal Environment Minister for a legally binding global agreement, the Australian government lacks its own regulatory frameworks to hold plastic producers accountable. This gap extends beyond plastics, affecting various problematic waste streams.
The Senate inquiry, launched to assess the federal government’ sprogress on waste reduction, revealed that Australia is struggling to make significant strides in waste management.
This marks the fourth inquiry ina decade, reflecting widespread frustration over the lack of progress.Witnesses questioned why the country hasn’t transitioned from ineffective voluntary schemes to mandatory product stewardship programs that enforce accountability on producers and retailers.
Resistance from plastic manufacturers and insufficient government leadership have been identified as key obstacles. Federal environment ministers have often threatened regulation but have not acted, shifting responsibility to states instead.
While there is some momentum towards regulating critical waste streams, stakeholders in the waste management industry express scepticism about actual legislative action.
Tyre Stewardship Australia(TSA) CEO Lina Goodman said: “It is clear that there is overwhelming industry and community support for a cohesive national approach to better waste management and transition to a circular economy.
“There is again overwhelming industry support for regulated product stewardship schemes as the path forward.
“Our current voluntary product stewardship scheme on tyres is working to the extent it can, but the need for mandatory participation by all tyre importers, will create a level-playing field for all businesses, improve outcomes, lower costs, remove free riders and help stop rogue operators and illegal dumping of tyres.
“Only federal government action can establish the uniform, best-practice regulation so urgently needed to achieve mandatory product stewardship objectives effectively and economically efficiently across Australia.”
“The time for voluntarys chemes has long passed – we need decisive federal action to implement a comprehensive national regulatory framework for stronger stewardship schemes, including tyres alongside other priority products such as batteries.”
