Tag: plastics sa

Detrimental effects of rolling blackouts on SA’s plastics industry

With the seemingly endless challenges that South Africa and its people face, the driving force behind these challenges seems to be the notorious rolling blackouts that have plagued our country for more than a decade. From manufacturing and production, to retail and education, not a single industry is being left unscathed and unaffected.

Plastics SA Executive Director Anton Hanekom says, the local plastics industry is no exception when it comes to experiencing the negative impact of relentless interruptions in power supply. “Our industry is especially exposed when it comes to loadshedding due to the fact that the processing and production of plastics and plastic products are done primarily through thermal processing. This means that high temperatures must be maintained throughout the manufacturing process. However, without power, these high temperatures cannot be effectively reached and maintained, nor is there enough time between scheduled power outages for the machines used to reach the required temperature for the processes to be restarted,” Hanekom explains.

Furthermore, when producing and manufacturing large quantities of polymer materials, the extrusion process is required, in which the materials are enriched with additives and melted in order for production to be completed successfully. This entire process comes to a halt when manufacturers experience power outages. While restarting the production process may appear simple, there are serious consequences when machines shut down unexpectedly for extended periods of time.

“During the extrusion or melting process, once the machine shuts down for a three- to four-hour loadshedding stint, the materials that were being processed solidify in the machine. This means that the time required to remove the solidified materials, clear the machine, and prepare to restart the process from scratch is added to the overall production time. A significant amount of time and material is wasted, which has a knock-on effect on operating costs, staffing, and production. Revenues are being eroded and thousands of jobs are being threatened in an industry that is a priority sector and contributes approximately 17 percent of the country’s manufacturing GDP,” Hanekom explains.

Ripple effects felt by other industries

Plastics are ubiquitous in our lives and can be found in almost every aspect. As a result, plastic manufacturing and use serve as the foundation for other products. When the plastics industry faces such severe challenges, it quickly snowballs and affects other closely related and critical industries, such as the packaging sector, which accounts for half of total plastic polymer consumption in South Africa, followed by the building and construction sector.

“Our country has a number of major packaging producers. However, the challenges extend beyond the financial bottom line of these producers, as effective packaging is important to avoid food waste, extend the shelf life and prevent spoilage or breakage of certain products. We need to start talking about “packaging security” in the same breath as food security. When plastics packaging production suffers, it leads to increased transportation costs, food waste and inflation,” Hanekom explains.

Impact of loadshedding on the recycling of plastics

During the previous reporting period, the country’s plastics manufacturing and recycling industries showed a welcome recovery from the devastating effects of the Covid-19 pandemic, indicating a 4.7% growth rate in 2021. Unfortunately, loadshedding threatens to undo these gains and efforts to recoup the industry.

“The recycling process is in essence also an extrusion process based on thermo-processing principles.  Profit margins in this industry are already extremely marginal. Add to that rising transportation costs and the need to invest in alternative energy sources such as generators or solar power to stay operational, and our recyclers are being brought to their knees when left in the dark for up to six hours at a time,” Hanekom emphasizes. Smaller entrepreneurial companies doing collection and baling do not have the funds for alternative energy sources and this causes further bottlenecks in the supply of recyclables.

Whilst relying on generators for private use can be effective to keep homes operational and the lights on until loadshedding ends, it does not pose an effective long-term solution for large companies that mass produce plastic products. Owing to the high cost of diesel, manufacturers find themselves paying double the tax when they use generators. In 2000 Government started implementing a diesel refund system to provide full or partial relief from the general fuel levy and the Road Accident Fund (RAF) levy to primary sectors such as agriculture. The refund system is in place for the farming, forestry, fishing and mining sectors. However, during the last budget speech, in light of the electricity crisis, a similar refund on the RAF levy for diesel used in the manufacturing process, such as for generators, has been extended to the manufacturers of foodstuffs. We believe this refund must be extended, to all manufacturing sectors using generators, to bring much needed relief from the general fuel levy and RAF levy.

The importance of becoming self-reliant

With the country’s power utility predicting at least two more years of loadshedding on the horizon, the plastics industry cannot afford to wait on the government to solve its problems. Hanekom says that, as the representative body of the plastics industry, Plastics SA strongly advises plastic producers to find practical and innovative ways of getting around the power supply issues they face. Load curtailment is another alternative solution, for those companies which gets their electricity directly from Eskom and where arrangements exist whereby Eskom can ask energy users to curtail or reduce their power usage up to a certain percentage of the load.

If no other economically viable solutions can be found, at least bargain for longer periods.  The industry would welcome loadshedding cycles of 12 hours or more.  In other words, switch the supply off for 12 hours but then allow the manufacturers and recyclers to run continuously for 7 days.  The stop-start cycles are not the solution for thermo-processing technologies.

“As part of government’s Industrial Policy Re-imagined, a Plastics Industry Master Plan is being developed to put the industry on a growth trajectory. This plan is already three years in the making and sees an active collaboration between industry, labour and government to develop a vision for the industry, identify blockages and constraints, and develop a set of key actions that need to be taken forward over the short and medium term. We are tapping into these resources and partnerships to try and find affordable and workable energy solutions to ensure our industry remains competitive. Whether these solutions involve going off the grid, feeding power back into the grid, or using renewable energy, a viable solution needs to be found and implemented as a matter of urgency if we hope to see any form of success in the future,” Hanekom concludes.

For more information, visit www.plasticsinfo.co.za

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Plastic-free July? Let’s work toward a litter free world instead

By Anton Hanekom, Executive Director of Plastics SA

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SA Plastics to tackle plastic pollution ahead of UNEA 5.2 (Nairobi)

The UN Environmental Assembly will be meeting for their fifth session (UNEA 5.2) in Nairobi, Kenya, next week. Expected to be the most important environmental pact since the 2015 Paris Agreement on climate change, the world’s environmental leaders will be meeting from 28 February – 2 March to draft a blueprint for a global plastics treaty that will address the issue of marine litter and plastic pollution in the environment.

Given the environmental challenges faced as a consequence of plastic pollution, South Africa’s Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment (DFFE) indicated that Government will give its support to the establishment of an Inter-Governmental Negotiating Committee (INC) under UNEA to negotiate an internationally legally binding instrument on plastic pollution.

Commenting on the upcoming UNEA 5.2 conference and South Africa’s position, Plastics SA Executive Director Anton Hanekom says they share the vision, passion and driving ambition to prevent leakage of plastic into the environment and achieve universal access to waste collection.

“We fully acknowledge and support the urgency to address the issue of plastic waste in the environment and marine plastic debris. However, we do not believe that this will be successfully achieved by regulating plastic products or production. Plastics can play a valuable and important role in achieving the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) provided that they are responsibly and sustainably produced, used, and recovered in a circular economy,” Hanekom says.

The Resolution proposes addressing plastic pollution through the following provisions:

• Establishing as necessary targets, definitions, methodologies, formats and obligations
• Addressing product design and use, including compounds, additives and harmful substances, as well as intentionally added microplastics;
• Promoting national action plans to prevent, reduce and remediate plastic pollution – tailored to local and national circumstances and the characteristics of specific sectors
• Increasing knowledge through awareness-raising and information exchange on best practices to prevent plastic pollution and promote behavioural change;
• Monitoring and reporting on national and international progress on implementation of the agreement;
• Providing scientific and socio-economic assessments and monitoring and reporting on plastic pollution in the environment;
• Cooperating and coordinating with relevant regional and international conventions, instruments and organisations;
• Specifying financial and technical arrangements as well as technology transfer assistance to support the implementation of the convention
• Addressing implementation and compliance issues;
• Promoting research and development into innovative solutions.

Although it is expected that the agreement will be based on the principles of equity and shared responsibilities, South Africa will be advocating that the special needs and circumstances of Africa be recognised and that the respective capabilities of each country must be analysed in light of national circumstances. 

Explains Hanekom: “Each country’s local and regional context is different, as is the availability of funding and other resources to develop and implement effective waste management solutions. It is important to recognise that nations have unique and different socio-political climates that should be taken into consideration. In our opinion, enforcing a one-size-fits-all approach on all countries would be catastrophic and short-sighted. The global agreement should allow for flexibility and room for country-specific approaches. Only by creating inclusive platforms where governments, the industry, civil society, and academia can negotiate and collaborate, will we be able to identify, develop and replicate workable solutions that will ultimately benefit the environment”.

Role-players in the Global plastic industry have proposed a set of five principles aimed at eliminating plastic waste, accelerating a circular economy for plastics, and serving as the basis for a global agreement. These are:

1. Have all nations agree on eliminating plastic waste, while providing flexibility and support to help meet the needs of individual nations
2. Achieve widespread access to waste collection
3. Recognize the role plastics play in a lower carbon future
4. Support innovation in product design and recycling technology
5. Measure progress

“Plastics SA proposes that countries should be allowed domestic flexibility to develop plans for eliminating plastic waste leakage that are regionally appropriate, based on local circumstances and supported by enabling policies. South Africa needs new, additional and predictable financing, technology transfer and the development of increased capacity to implement our plans. We believe that a global agreement could be used as an opportunity to accelerate the progress that we have already made in this regard.  By building a stronger than ever foundation for effective waste management, we can ensure that used plastics are kept in the economy (recovered and recycled) and out of the environment,” Hanekom concludes.

For more information, visit www.plasticsinfo.co.za

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Douw Steyn, Sustainability Director of Plastics SA, in conversation with Gordon Brown, publisher of Green Economy Journal

Douw Steyn, Sustainability Director of Plastics SA, in conversation with Gordon Brown, publisher of Green Economy Journal

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SA prepares to celebrate Clean-Up & Recycle SA week

Plastics SA – the umbrella body representing the entire plastics industry –  is calling on South Africans to participate in the annual Clean-Up & Recycle SA week from 13-18 September 2021. This year’s week will once again culminate in National Recycling Day on Friday, 17 September 2021 and the International Coastal Clean-Up Day/Let’s Do It World Clean-up Day on Saturday, 18 September 2021.

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REPORT | Plastic: Past and present

Plastic is a complex material that provides value across several industries, yet its strength and durability have resulted in widespread persistence in the environment, threatening human health and the health of our marine, terrestrial and freshwater ecosystems. These negative externalities, once quantified, reveal the true costs of plastic.

SOUTH AFRICA’S ENGAGEMENT

Numerous global and regional initiatives and voluntary agreements have been established with different approaches to solve the plastic pollution challenge.

INTERNATIONAL STRATEGIES, PARTNERSHIPS AND FRAMEWORKS

Since 1972, South Africa has ratified several international treaties, forged partnerships and subscribed to legal frameworks to combat plastic pollution in its terrestrial and marine environment. This is giving South Africa a firm footing to voice its concerns in global forums, on the one hand, and gaining access to the latest environmental considerations regarding the combating of plastic pollution, on the other. Various initiatives and platforms exist, and this list is not exhaustive.

2019: The Basel Convention on the Control of Transboundary Movements of Hazardous Wastes and their Disposal, which South Africa is party to, at its 14th Conference of the Parties, adopted a decision to incorporate certain categories of plastic under its scope. This includes giving parties the right to prohibit the import of plastic at end of life as well as requiring parties to obtain prior written informed consent for the export of plastic of this nature. To be traded, waste plastic must be clean and consist of single or clearly defined plastic polymer types that can be recycled. Mixed bales of rubbish are not acceptable.

This decision obtained great media coverage and was a statement from the 187 countries to address the plastic pollution problem. Since then, the world has seen developing countries, specifically the Philippines and Indonesia, sending back shipments of plastic scrap and waste to countries of origin, including the USA, the UK and Australia.

South Africa became a signatory in May 1994. The Basel amendments will take effect from 1 January 2021.

2017: The G20 Action Plan on Marine Litter was agreed upon by the G20 countries (akin to the G7 Action Plan of 2015). The action plan includes a commitment to “take action to prevent and reduce marine litter of all kinds, including from single-use plastics and micro-plastics”.

South Africa is one of the G20 countries.

2015: The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development was adopted by all UN member states. A blueprint for achieving this agenda took the form of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

The SDGs that specifically relate to combating plastic pollution are:

• SDG 6: Clean water and sanitation

• SDG 8: Decent work and economic growth

• SDG 9: Industry, innovation and infrastructure

• SDG 11: Sustainable cities and communities

• SDG12: Responsible consumption and production

• SDG 13: Climate action

• SDG 14: Life below water

• SDG 15: Life on land

• SDG 17: Partnerships for the goals

2014: Several UN Environment Assembly (UNEA) resolutions have been made on marine litter and microplastics from the first UNEA meeting in 2014. These resolutions called for strengthening the UN Environment Programme’s (UNEP) role in acting on marine litter and microplastics in UNEA-1; establishing the Ad Hoc Open-Ended Expert Group on Marine Litter and Microplastics in UNEA-3; and addressing single-use plastics in UNEA-4. Resolutions also call for greater collaboration and coordination of efforts to address plastic pollution.

South Africa is part of the member states participating in the UNEA discussions.

2011: The Honolulu Strategy: Global Framework for Prevention and Management of Marine Debris is a voluntary approach to connect marine litter programmes and foster collaboration among them by sharing lessons learned and best practices. It is the recommended framework to be used for UNEP’s GPA (see 1995 below).

South Africa is part of two Regional Seas Programme Conventions, namely the Abidjan and Nairobi conventions, which places it in a unique position to coordinate initiatives through both platforms.

The Abidjan Convention is currently undergoing a regional assessment on marine litter to inform a Regional Action Plan to address marine litter in member countries. The Nairobi Convention completed a marine litter assessment in 2008 and is currently implementing its Regional Action Plan.

1995: The Global Programme of Action for the Protection of the Marine Environment from Land-based Activities (GPA) was set up in 1995 and is hosted by UNEP. The Global Programme of Action aims to foster collaboration and coordination among states to prevent marine pollution from land-based sources and encourage action at the national, regional and international level. The programme operates primarily through the Regional Seas Programme.

1982: Part XII (Articles 192–237) of the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Seas (UNCLOS) aims to protect and preserve the marine environment from land- and sea-based sources of marine pollution. UNCLOS is a comprehensive convention that covers virtually all matters relating to the management and use of the ocean.

South Africa ratified UNCLOS on 23 December 1997.

1978: The International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships (MARPOL) aims to prevent marine pollution from operational or accidental causes by ships.

South Africa accepted participation in MARPOL in February 1985.

1972: Convention on the Prevention of Marine Pollution by Dumping Wastes and Other Matter (the London Convention) and the 1996 Protocol to the London Convention (the London Protocol) aim to control pollution of the sea by dumping and to encourage regional agreements supplementary to the Convention.

South Africa is a party to the London Convention.

AFRICAN PARTNERSHIPS

2020: President Cyril Ramaphosa is the chairperson of the African Union (AU) in 2020, presenting another opportunity for leadership in the case where the AU has also called on African cities to commit to recycling at least 50% of the urban waste they generate by 2023 and to grow urban waste recycling industries.

2019: In 2019 the African First Ladies took the lead on the plastics front by hosting two high-level side events. The first was on Banning Plastics towards a Pollution-free Africa Campaign, which resulted in the Addis Ababa Communique to advocate the banning of plastics. The second was on Plastic Pollution Solutions for Development in Africa to initiate the implementation of the Communique.

2016: The East African Legislative Assembly passed a Bill in 2016 to ban the manufacture, sale, import and use of certain plastic bags across its six member states, with a combined population of approximately 186-million people. A total of 127 countries have put into force some type of legislation to ban the use, manufacture, free distribution and import of plastic bags as at July 2018. African countries have been seen to be leaders in this regard, with 37 countries regulating plastic bags in some way.

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TOWARDS A NEW GLOBAL LEGALLY BINDING AGREEMENT ON PLASTIC POLLUTION

The African Ministerial Conference on the Environment (AMCEN) held in Durban in November 2019, saw 54 member states endorse a declaration calling for global action on plastic pollution. Among the options to be further explored was a suggestion for a new global agreement to combat plastic pollution. African governments have now joined the Caribbean Community (CARICOM), the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), the Pacific Island Countries and the Nordic states in their call for strong global action on plastic pollution.

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THE NEW PLASTICS ECONOMY

The New Plastics Economy is an ambitious global initiative to build momentum towards a plastics system that works. It applies the principles of the circular economy and brings together key stakeholders to rethink and redesign the future of plastics, starting with packaging. The New Plastics Economy Global Commitment is a shared vision agreed upon by businesses, governments and organisations to address plastic pollution at source. It is led by The Ellen MacArthur Foundation together with UNEP to drive engagement with governments and other key players.

The New Plastics Economy also hosts a global Plastics Pact Network, which is a platform for multiple national implementation initiatives. Each national initiative will be aligned with the common vision outlined in the Global Commitment but will set national targets and develop a roadmap to suit the local context. The South African Plastics Pact was launched by WWF South Africa in partnership with the South African Plastics Recycling Organisation (SAPRO) and the UK’s Water and Resources Action Programme (WRAP) in January 2020. It is the first national Plastics Pact in Africa and joins the global Plastics Pact Network.

THE SOUTH AFRICAN PLASTICS PACT – A FIRST IN AFRICA

The South African Plastics Pact was launched in January 2020 and joined The Ellen MacArthur Foundation’s Plastics Pact global network aligned with the New Plastics Economy vision. The first of its kind in Africa, the South African Plastics Pact joins France, the UK, the Netherlands, Chile, Australia and the Pacific and the European Union to exchange knowledge and collaborate to accelerate the transition to a circular economy for plastic.

The South African Plastics Pact is managed and implemented by GreenCape, with the founding members committed to a series of ambitious targets for 2025 to prevent plastics from becoming waste or pollution.

The South African Plastics Pact members are Berry Astrapack, the Clicks Group, Clover, Coca-Cola Africa, Danone, Distell, HomeChoice, Myplas, Pick n Pay, Polyoak, Palletplast, RCL Foods, SPAR, Spur Holdings, The Foschini Group, Tigerbrands, Tuffy, Unilever and Woolworths. Supporting member organisations include the African Circular Economy Network, African Reclaimers Organisation, the City of Cape Town, the Department of Environment, Forestry and Fisheries, Fruit South Africa, the Institute of Waste Management of Southern Africa, the Polyolefin Responsibility Organisation, the Polystyrene Association of South Africa, the PET Recycling Company, South African Bottled Water Association, SAPRO and the Southern African Vinyls Association.

By 2025, all members commit to:

• Eliminate problematic or unnecessary plastic packaging through redesign, innovation or alternative (reuse) delivery models

• 100% of plastic packaging to be reusable, recyclable or compostable*

• 70% of plastic packaging effectively recycled

• 30% average post-consumer recycled content across all plastic packaging

*In the case of compostables, this is applicable only in closed-loop and controlled systems with sufficient infrastructure available or fit-for-purpose applications.

To achieve these 2025 targets for a circular economy for plastic in South Africa, various activities are required:

• Some plastic items are problematic or unnecessary and need to be designed out.

• Reuse models can reduce the need for single-use packaging, while at the same time holding the potential for significant user and business benefits.

• All plastics need to be designed to be reusable, recyclable or compostable in practice and at scale, with a concerted effort on both the design and the after-use side.

By delivering on these targets, the South African Plastics Pact will help to boost job creation in the South African plastic collection and recycling sector, and help to create new opportunities in product design and reuse business models.

ALLIANCE TO END PLASTIC WASTE

Another global initiative is the Alliance to End Plastic Waste (AEPW), which was founded by various global petrochemical companies. The alliance aims to raise funds in order to invest in developing and scaling up solutions to manage plastic at end of life, through education, innovation, clean-ups and investment in infrastructure in Southeast Asia. The fundraising and investment target is $1,5 billion, to be provided by the member organisations over the next five years.

Sasol is currently the only African-owned company which is a member of the Alliance.

AFRICAN MARINE WASTE NETWORK

The African Marine Waste Network is a project under the Sustainable Seas Trust. It aims to prevent marine litter at source by providing a platform for collaboration and knowledge sharing through its network of government bodies, industry and civil society. Its current projects include developing and testing marine litter monitoring guidelines in collaboration with UNEP, developing educational materials for schools, promoting enterprise development and providing research expertise in ghost gear and microplastics.

CLiP

The Commonwealth Litter Programme (CLiP) aims to support four developing countries (the Solomon Islands, Vanuatu, South Africa and Belize) in preventing plastic litter from entering the marine environment. CLiP is led by the UK through the Centre for Environment Fisheries and Aquaculture Science (Cefas) and is funded by the UK Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra).

THE AFRICAN CIRCULAR ECONOMY ALLIANCE

The African Circular Economy Alliance is a project hosted under the Platform for Accelerating the Circular Economy by the World Resources Institute. It aims to share best practices, undertake collaborative projects and advocate for the circular economy between countries at a ministerial level. The alliance was founded by Rwanda, South Africa and Nigeria in 2016, and joined by Niger, Senegal, Malawi and the Democratic Republic of the Congo in 2018.

Read the Green Economy Journal to find more articles like the one above

©Text 2020 WWF South Africa Published in 2020 by WWF – World Wide Fund for Nature (formerly World Wildlife Fund), Cape Town, South Africa.

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Developing a roadmap for plastic waste management

Key role-players in the plastics manufacturing, collection and recycling industries, the Department of Environment, Forestry and Fisheries (DEFF) and other interested parties recently participated in the 2020 Plastics Colloquium feedback session which was held virtually. This was the second Plastics Colloquium following the inaugural event that took place in Johannesburg a year ago and was jointly hosted by DEFF, the Consumer Goods Council of SA, Plastics|SA and the informal sector associations.

The objectives of the annual Plastics Colloquium are:

• To create a platform for representatives of government, private sector and civil society to engage with one another in order to provide a more effective partnerships with the aim of enhancing plastic waste management
• To promote discussions between these role-players on sustainable management of plastic waste in the country
• To create a national platform where information can be exchanged on best practice with regards to plastic waste management
• To identify key economic opportunities that could be realized from plastic waste and discuss ways in which the informal sector could be incorporated into plastic waste recycling
• To deliberate mechanisms and technologies for the effective delivery of waste management services by municipalities and other service providers

Six working groups were each afforded an opportunity to present on the progress they have made against the priorities that were agreed to at the 2019 Plastics Colloquium.  Representatives of these working groups offered some insight into the success and challenges being faced with biodegradable and compostable plastics; product standards and certification; product design, development and innovation; integration of the informal waste economy; infrastructure (including SALGA activities); and consumer education and awareness.

“The 2020 Plastics Colloquium feedback session was an important step forward for everybody involved in the plastics value chain. It was hugely encouraging to hear about the impressive progress the various working groups have made this past year despite the huge disruption caused by the Covid-19 pandemic,” says Anton Hanekom, executive director of Plastics|SA.

Hanekom also applauded the clear commitment made by government and all the other stakeholders to work together to find workable and sustainable solutions to prevent plastic waste from ending up in the environment.

“Achieving our objective of zero plastics in the environment is not something that the plastics industry alone can achieve. Finding a solution to the plastics leaking into the environment and ending up in our rivers, streams, and oceans requires teamwork, focus, and dedicated effort from everybody involved.”

Anton Hanekom, executive director of Plastics|SA

Whilst he admits that much work still needs to be done before South Africa reaches the implementation phase, Hanekom added that it was encouraging that the various stakeholders and role players were each willing to take responsibility for a specific section of the plan.

The following were identified as key areas requiring attention during 2021:

1. Developing a proper municipal collection system with the necessary infrastructure to deal with the waste collected in neighbourhoods, (i.e., landfills, incineration possibilities for plastics that are difficult to recycle, buy-back centres etc.)
2. The role of reclaimers in the waste management process, with proper consideration and attention given to their relationship with regards to household waste collection and separation, expanded public work programmes and municipal public employment systems;
3. The role of producers and formalizing them into EPR schemes in order to eliminate the “free riders” who do not financially contribute towards plastic waste collection and recycling the packaging that enters the local market. Where necessary, certain single-use plastics will need to be phased out and replaced with compostable plastics;
4. Ongoing research by the CSIR to include the use of compostable plastics and waste-to-energy, in order to provide decisionmakers with a clear understanding of how the system works and ensuring that every decision taken in the future is evidence-based;
5. Building on the work already done by Plastics|SA and the Consumer Goods Council of SA when it comes to educating and informing consumers about the consequences of littering, the importance of recycling and their role in creating a litter-free South Africa.

Minister Barbara Creecy set the 2021 Plastics Colloquium as the deadline by when she will be requiring the various working groups to present a possible system, governance model and financing of the plans.

“Plastic waste has huge value and can create much-needed wealth and opportunities for our country if it is managed correctly. The Minister acknowledged that the plastics sector is way ahead of many of the other sectors in our country. However, we cannot afford to slow down in our efforts to design a clear road map for ending plastic waste in the environment. To this end, we are working with retailers, brand owners, producers, raw material suppliers and recyclers to unite with us around one vision, one message and one campaign,” Hanekom concludes.

For more information, visit www.plasticsinfo.co.za

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Plastics SA releases recycling figures for 2019

Plastics SA, the umbrella body representing the entire South African plastics industry, has just released the plastics recycling figures for the year ending December 2019.

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Sasol becomes a signatory of Operation Clean Sweep

Sasol has become the first raw material supplier to the South African plastics industry to become a signatory of Operation Clean Sweep (OCS) – an international stewardship programme designed to prevent resin pellet, flake, and powder loss and help keep this material out of the marine environment.  Sasol is committed to providing chemicals and energy in a responsible way and respecting the environment by continually improving performance to minimise and avoid adverse impacts.

Plastics|SA is the licensee and project coordinator for OCS in South Africa’s plastics industry.  As a signatory of the “Joint declaration for solutions to the problem of marine litter” which took place during the 5th International Conference on Marine Debris, held in Honolulu in 2011, it joined the international plastics community’s commitment to address the issue of plastics in the marine environment. 

Douw Steyn, Sustainability Director at Plastics|SA says spilled pellets, flakes and powder can make their way into local waterways and ultimately estuaries and the ocean. “This isn’t just an eyesore and a litter issue. Pellets, flakes and powder can be mistaken for food by birds or marine animals, and could harm them if ingested,” he explains.

As part of their plan of action to implement OCS in South Africa, Plastics|SA has developed a detailed toolkit and a manual that contains guidelines to help plastics industry operations managers reduce the accidental loss of pellets, flakes and powder from the manufacturing facility into the environment. To date, more than 9 local companies, as well as the PRO’s (Producer Responsibility Organisations) such as PETCO, Polyco, the Southern African Vinyls Association and Polystyrene Association of SA have taken the OCS pledge on behalf of their members and agreed to the following six commitments in order to establish / demonstrable environmentally responsible processes:

1. Improving worksite set-up to prevent and address spills
2. Creating and publishing internal procedures to achieve zero operations plastic material loss
3. Providing employee training and accountability for spill prevention, containment, clean-up and disposal
4. Auditing performance regularly
5. Complying with all applicable state and local regulations governing operations plastics waste containment and management
6. Encouraging value chain partners (contractors, transporters, distributors, etc.) to pursue the same goals.

Sasol as a responsible polymer producer aims to join other companies along the plastics value chain in ensuring that polymer pellets are manufactured, transported and stored responsibly until it is converted into the final product, says Bernard Klingenberg, Executive Director of Sasol.

“Through OCS Sasol will further minimise our environmental footprint by ensuring that our polymer is managed responsibly throughout the manufacturing life cycle stages to prevent any release into the environment.”

Bernard Klingenberg, Executive Director of Sasol

“We have conducted internal assessments at our South African production sites and implemented improvements which include reinforcing good housekeeping practices, employee awareness, and implementation of screens on drains.  In addition, Sasol is in the process of engaging with supply chain partners to assist them where necessary in adopting these important practices”, says Klingenberg.

Leading up to the signing of the OCS Pledge Sasol undertook various activities towards becoming an OS member which include education and awareness sessions, production facility audits, and conducted self-assessments questionnaires along Sasol’s supply chain. 

Plastics | SA is highly appreciative of these results and the commitment shown by Sasol to OCS to prevent resin pellet, flake, and powder loss and help keep this material out of the marine environment and welcomes Sasol as the first raw material supplier as a signatory of OCS in South Africa.

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