Vietnam: Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) central to the fight against plastic waste
Cofinanced by the European Union and German Government, the Rethinking Plastics – Circular Economy Solutions to Marine Litter project is providing support to seven countries in East and Southeast Asia with two objectives: reduce plastic waste and marine litter and the transition towards a circular economy in the region.
Extended Producer Responsibility, many benefits
This environmental policy instrument, which emerged in a few countries back in the 1980s-1990s, makes companies (manufacturers, distributors, importers…) financially responsible for the management of the waste (collection, sorting and recycling) generated by the products they market, throughout its lifecycle.
This has many benefits. They are, of course, environmental (improved collection and recycling of packaging, incentive to create less polluting packaging, etc.), but also economic and social (development of the recycling industry, creation of jobs in the sector, socioeconomic integration of informal waste workers, consumer awareness…).
To help the Vietnamese Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment (MONRE) integrate the principle of Extended Producer Responsibility into its environmental policy, the Rethinking Plastics – Circular Economy Solutions to Marine Litter project has produced a policy brief which provides elements of reflection for the implementation of this type of mechanism.
Consult the policy brief in English or in Vietnamese
Inventory and recommendations
The policy brief has been prepared by the project team in conjunction with the MONRE Department of Legal Affairs and with the participation of the French CITEO system. It aims to help the public authorities gain a better understanding of the concept of Extended Producer Responsibility. “The document also makes an inventory of the EPR sectors in both Europe and Asia, which allows various scenarios to be explored”, says Fanny Quertamp, coordinator for Vietnam of the Rethinking Plastics project.
These contextual elements are completed by a toolbox, which aims to help Vietnam make the principle of EPR sectors operational in the Vietnamese context. “We analyse what the introduction of an EPR would actually involve for packaging, especially from a legal and institutional point of view”, adds Fanny Quertamp. “The toolbox developed in the PREVENT Waste Alliance, based on international experience, including European experience, enables a dialogue between the various public and private stakeholders and shows the actual operational implications. This tool is a support for the development of a handbook that takes into account the context, the stakeholders and the local realities in Vietnam. This is contributing to the drafting of the decree which will be implemented on 1 January 2022”, she concludes.
For further information about the content of the toolbox:
prevent-waste.net/epr-toolbox
Consult the toolbox in English or in Vietnamese
Towards an environmental policy integrating EPR sectors
On 17 November 2020, the National Assembly of Vietnam closed the 10th parliamentary session and adopted the amended law on environmental protection.
Articles 54 and 55 of this law set out the principles for the definition of a legal framework on Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR), particularly for packaging. The implementing decree, which is scheduled for July 2021, will be followed by an implementing circular by 1 January 2022. The creation of a national EPR platform is facilitating the coordination of the various projects and initiatives that are contributing to the definition of the legal framework.
Assumptions soon tested with a pilot project
In addition to the policy brief and toolbox for the operationalisation of the principle of EPR sectors, the Rethinking Plastics project has also launched a call for projects. “Our support involves both technical assistance and demonstration through action”, explains Fanny Quertamp.
A pilot project, which will last 18 months, has been selected to test new approaches and identify good practices that could be replicated on a larger scale. This pilot project is implemented by the French National Research Institute for Sustainable Development (IRD) and Hanoi Architectural University (HAU). It aims to increase the collection, sorting and recycling of plastic packaging in Ho Chi Minh City in order to reduce releases into the environment.
The pilot project, which started in September 2020, is focusing on:
(1) Creating guidelines for the classification and measurement of the collection and recycling of plastic packaging in rural, urban and periurban areas;
(2) Improving the sorting of waste at source by consumers;
(3) Defining best practices for plastic packaging.
This data and experience are also allowing the pilot project to provide knowledge about the appropriate options and contribute to the development of the legal framework for EPR for packaging in Vietnam.
More about the pilot project in English or in Vietnamese
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