Background

 

Plastic pollution poses a significant threat to the environment, human health, and the economy, particularly in the Asia-Pacific region - a major producer and consumer of plastic products. This pollution causes widespread environmental degradation, affecting marine ecosystems, wildlife, and communities. It is also a human rights issue, impacting not only the right to a healthy environment but also the right to life, health, food, water, livelihood and an adequate standard of living, especially for vulnerable populations.

Businesses play a crucial role in mitigating plastic pollution through sustainable practices, innovation, and stakeholder collaboration. Recently adopted Extended Producers Responsibility (EPR) laws and policies in the Asia-Pacific region will enforce the ‘Polluters Pay Principle’ and require plastic manufacturers to be responsible for plastic waste separate collection and recycling. This is currently largely carried out by informal waste work forces, who face several challenges related to human rights, including lack of protective gear, lack of access to social services, and gender discrimination. 

To ensure a just as well as effective transition to sustainable waste management in Asia and the Pacific it will be crucial to include the informal waste and recycling sector in solutions. These groups have a right to participate in environmental decision-making that affects them. To gain better understanding about how this can be achieved, the UN Environment Programme (UNEP), through the SEA circular initiative, has gathered knowledge and experiences from informal individuals and groups (e.g., waste pickers, collectors, associations, cooperatives) and small and medium enterprises (SMEs) (e.g., recyclers, aggregators) in Vietnam, Indonesia, and the Philippines. The outcome report of this study will provide valuable context and recommendations for guiding these efforts. 

This session aims to empower businesses to integrate human rights considerations into their strategies to combat plastic pollution, contributing to sustainable development and the fulfillment and protection of human rights. The session will specifically look at the recommendations from the UNEP report and aims to inspire businesses to take a leading role in addressing plastic pollution through a human right-based approach, such as including waste pickers and the informal sector in solutions and contributing to a sustainable and equitable future for all. 

Access to remedies for communities affected by plastic pollution is another important aspect of a human rights-based approach to EPR. This is still an area which needs to be explored further within the plastics sector. The session will therefore also explore the right to access remedy for damage caused by the plastic sector and how this is linked to the inclusion and participation of informal workers.

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Objectives

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• Increase understanding among businesses about the human rights implications of plastic pollution.

• Provide practical guidance for businesses to implement human rights-based approaches to plastic pollution management, including how to include and strengthen the participation of the informal waste and recycling sector.

• Discuss the right to access remedy in the plastic sector and how this is linked to the inclusion and participation of informal workers.

• Foster partnerships between businesses, governments, civil society, and communities to develop comprehensive solutions to plastic pollution

 

Questions

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• What are some of the major human rights implications of plastic pollution in Asia and the Pacific? What is the situation for informal waste pickers?

• How can businesses effectively integrate human rights considerations into their strategies to address plastic pollution, including the human rights principle of participation?

• What are some successful examples of businesses mitigating plastic pollution in ways that also promote human rights?

• How can the findings from the SEA circular report on informal waste pickers and EPR be applied to improve business practices and policies?

• What does the right to access remedy mean in relation to plastic pollution and for the plastic sector as well as affected communities?

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Format

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This one-hour session will start with a short video based on the UNEP report on Extended Producer Responsibility and Human Rights-based Approach in relation to the informal waste and recycling sector in six ASEAN countries as a curtain raiser. This will be followed by an introduction/overview of the UNEP report and a short Mentimenter exercise to engage the audience. The main segment of the session will be a moderated multi-stakeholder panel discussion.