We need to do better: Conservationists are calling for both industries and consumers to work towards decreasing our dependability on plastics and to instead turn to eco-friendly alternatives. — Bernama
PETALING JAYA: More must be done to encourage the adoption of environmentally-friendly alternatives to plastic packaging to tackle Malaysia’s plastic waste issue, say environmental groups.
Ecotourism and Conservation Society Malaysia president Andrew Sebastian said the massive increase in plastic packaging waste since the Covid-19 pandemic was due to the rise in popularity of delivery services.
Both industries and consumers have become accustomed to these services, which use plastic packaging, he said.
In Feb 17 this year, a visual graphic by the Visual Capitalist put Malaysia as the third-biggest global contributor to plastic pollution in the ocean with 73,098 metric tonnes, after the Philippines with 356,371 metric tonnes and India with 126,513 metric tonnes.
Sebastian said despite industry players and the public being aware of the detrimental effects of plastic on the environment, many have not switched to eco-friendly solutions due to a lack of incentives.
He added that increasing public environmental consciousness would be key to getting industry players to shift towards developing more sustainable and eco-friendly alternatives.
“An easy method to assist this would be by making the alternatives cheaper, either through financial incentives such as tax breaks or special grants for research and development for industry players.
“The opposite can also be useful, such as by removing any and all financial incentives for plastic packaging usage and charging higher taxes on plastic packaging, which will force both consumers and businesses to find cheaper alternatives,” he added.
On possible alternatives, he recommended the government and industry players look into recycled cardboard and papier- mache, among others.
To save on development costs, he encouraged industry players to look at examples of sustainable packaging alternatives in other countries such as India.
Sahabat Alam Malaysia (SAM) senior research officer Mageswari Sangaralingam called for a holistic approach that involves encouraging the use of reusable bags through a deposit and return system.
“By cutting out plastic packaging altogether by using reusable bags or containers, together with a return programme, we can foster a culture of being both environmentally and socially responsible.
“This is because a deposit- return system will provide consumers with a financial incentive to want to return their reusable packaging to avoid losing their deposit.
“They could also get discounts as part of a loyalty responsibility programme based on the number of times they return their reusable bags or containers,” Mageswari said.
Among the common materials for reusable bags she recommended was beeswax wraps that are compostable, reusable and have antimicrobial properties that could be useful in packaging perishable foods.
For food containers, she recommended the use of metal or glass containers that were not only reusable but also recyclable if no longer needed.
Malaysian Bar Council environmental and climate change committee deputy co-chair Saha Deva Arunasalam called on industry players to make use of existing alternatives to plastic bubble wrap and packaging.
“There are already plenty of alternatives such as corrugated cardboard and shredded paper, which can even be made inhouse by using leftover materials.
“This makes them not only easy to find but also relatively cheap for both big industry players and small businesses,” she said.
She added that eco-friendly versions of bubble wrap and plastic wrap made out of either paper or biodegradable plastics were also more easily found now as more eco-solutions-based brands keep popping up.
