Lok Sabha Question No. 316 (STARRED), answered on 2021-12-20
Subject: Plastic Waste
Ministry: ENVIRONMENT,  FORESTS AND CLIMATE CHANGE
Asked by: Thirumaa Valavan Thol

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF ENVIRONMENT, FOREST AND CLIMATE CHANGE

## LOK SABHA STARRED QUESTION No. 316

TO BE ANSWERED ON 20.12.2021

## Plastic Waste

## *316.   SHRI THIRUMAAVALAVAN THOL:

Will the Minister of ENVIRONMENT, FOREST AND CLIMATE CHANGE be pleased to state:

- (a) whether the Government is monitoring the quantity of plastic waste flowing into the sea;
- (b) if so, the details of plastic waste flowing into the sea for the past five years and the extent to which such flow reduced as per the plan of the Government; and
- (c) if not, whether the Government has any plan for the control of plastic waste flow into the sea and if so, the details thereof?

## ANSWER

## MINISTER FOR ENVIRONMENT, FOREST AND CLIMATE CHANGE (SHRI. BHUPENDER YADAV)

(a) to (c): A statement is laid on the Table of the House.

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Statement  referred  to  in  reply  to  parts  (a)  to  (c)  of  Lok  Sabha  Starred Question  No.  316  to  be  answered  on  20 th December,  2021  on  'Plastic Waste' by Shri Thirumaavalavan Thol,  Hon'ble Member of Parliament.

(a) to (c) : The total plastic waste generation in the country for last five years as per Annual report of Plastic Waste Management submitted by SPCBs/PCCs, is given below:

| Year    | Plastic Waste Generation (Tonnes per annum)   |
|---------|-----------------------------------------------|
| 2015-16 | 15,89,392 (Information from 19 States/UTs)    |
| 2016-17 | 15,68,733(Information from 21 States/UTs )    |
| 2017-18 | 6,60,760 ( information from 14 States/UTs)    |
| 2018-19 | 33,60,043                                     |
| 2019-20 | 34,69,780                                     |

The plastic waste generation in the country is 34.69 lakhs Tonnes per annum (TPA) during the year 2019-20 of which approximately 15.8 Lacs TPA of plastic waste is recycled and 1.67 lacs TPA is co-processed in Cement Kilns. A portion of the unprocessed and littered plastic waste can finds its way through surface waste bodies like rivers into the sea.

The National Centre for Coastal Research, Ministry of Earth Sciences, Government of India, conducts research at select locations along the Indian Coast to quantify marine litter in beach, surface  sea  water,  and  seafloor  on  a  regular  basis.  Studies  have  been  undertaken  to characterize marine litter in coastal areas. In one of the studies, multilayer large and medium size packets of snacks, monolayer plastic packaging used for food, detergent etc., synthetic woven bags and polythene bags have been reported.

The  Plastic  Waste  Management  Rules,  2016,  as  amended,  provide  the  statutory framework of  plastic  waste  management  in  the  country.  The  Rules  prohibits  manufacture, import,  stocking,  distribution,  sale  and  use  of  carry  bags  and  plastic  sheets  less  than  fifty microns in thickness in the country. There is complete ban on sachets using plastic material used for storing, packing or selling gutkha, tobacco and pan masala.

The Ministry has notified the Plastic Waste Management Amendment  Rules, 2021, vide GSR NO. 571 (E) on 12th August 2021, in the Gazette of India, prohibiting identified single use plastic items, which have low utility and high littering potential, by 1 st July 2022.

As  far  as,  plastic  carry  bags  are  concerned,  the  Plastic  Waste  Management  Amendment Rules,  2021,  prohibits  manufacture,  import,  stocking,  distribution,  sale  and  use  of  plastic carry bags having thickness less than seventy five microns with effect from 30th September, 2021, and having thickness less than thickness of one hundred and twenty microns with effect from the 31st December, 2022.Further, over and above the Plastic Waste Management Rules, 2016,  as  amended,  thirty  four  states/UTs  have  issued  notifications/orders  to  introduce regulations  pertaining  to  complete  or  partial  ban  on  plastic  carry  bags  and/or  identified single-use plastic items.

The  Ministry  of  Environment,  Forest  and  Climate  Change  has  notified  the  draft Regulations  on  the  Extended  Producer  Responsibility  for  plastic  packaging  under  Plastic Waste Management Rules, 2016, as amended from time to time, in the Gazette of India vide GSR No. 722 (E) on 6th October, 2021for public consultation. As per the draft notification, the producer, Importers &brand-owners respectively shall ensure minimum level of recycling

(excluding end of life disposal) of plastic packaging waste collected under Extended Producer Responsibility.  The  enforceable  prescription  of  minimum  level  of  recycling  of  plastic packaging  waste  collected  under  Extended  Producer  Responsibility  to  producer,  Importers &brand-owners in the draft notification will further strengthen  circular economy  of plastic packaging waste.

The  Government  has  also  been  taking measures  for  awareness generation towards elimination of single use plastics and effective implementation of Plastic Waste Management Rules, 2016.

Separately,  through  the  Coastal  Regulation  Zone  Notification,  2011  several  activities  are prohibited in the CRZ areas like setting up and expansion of units or mechanism for disposal of wastes and effluents, except for some essential activities.   The  Government  of  India  has initiated several programmes such as Swachh Bharat Mission (Urban and Grameen), National Mission for Clean Ganga and Smart Cities Mission' in order to develop clean and sustainable environment.

The  Ministry  has  also  constituted  a  Steering  Committee  on  14 th May  2019  in  order  to harmonize the efforts of various ministries/departments and agencies towards marine litter particularly due to plastic waste.

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