Proposed further action on plastic in NSW

Published on 22 December 2023

Clear plastic bottles and plastic bags on white sand near body of water

NSW banned some plastic items in 2022, but more action needs to happen

NSW EPA are consulting on the paper NSW Plastics Next Steps, outlining proposed further action on plastic in NSW, for fourteen weeks from Sunday 29 October until Sunday 4 February 2024.

In 2022 NSW began to tackle problematic plastics by phasing out the supply of items such as lightweight plastic bags; plastic single-use cutlery, bowls (without spill-proof lids), plates, stirrers and straws; and plastic microbeads in some rinse-off personal care products.

We need to build on our work by targeting additional problematic or unnecessary plastic items.

The Plastic Reduction and Circular Economy Act 2021 gives us the tools to do this, by allowing us to:

phase out the supply of problematic or unnecessary plastic items
set design standards for plastic items, including requirements for the way an item must be made, packaged or labelled
make brand owners responsible for regulated products across their life cycle, from product design to recycling or disposal.

In this paper we identify some plastic items that:

are frequently littered
release microplastics into the environment
contain harmful chemical additives
are proposed to be regulated in other states and territories.

We need to come together and act to prevent harm to human health and the environment.

We encourage your views on the underlying rationale and proposed actions and what else we could be doing.

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