HCM City (VNS/VNA) - Collective action from the Vietnamesegovernment, the private sector and consumers is essential tocombat one of the great environmental challenges facing the world, the excessof plastic waste in oceans and water sources, a United Nations (UN) officialsaid on June 6. 

Albert T. Liebeg, chair of the UN-VietnamResults Group on Climate Change and the Environment, said at an internationalconference on plastic waste held in Ho Chi Minh City that governmentsshould lead by enacting strong policies to push for circular models of designand production of plastic products.

Lieberg noted that 60 percent of allplastic that ends up in oceans comes from only six countries in Asia, includingVietnam. 

Vietnam is among the top five countriesresponsible for the estimated 13 million tonnes of plastic dumped in the oceansevery year. 

“Single-use plastics are widespread and wastemanagement capacity is limited in the country, causing a rising burdenfrom plastic waste to the environment and public health,” he said. 

It is estimated that 1.8 million tonnes ofplastic waste are generated in Vietnam every year, with plastic consumptionrising 16-18 percent annually. 

Waste management, recycling facilities andgovernment policies are not in place to sufficiently respond to theincreasing needs, he said.

“One major concern is the lack of a systemfor waste segregation at source,” he noted.  

Robust legislation must be enacted to curb theproduction and use of unnecessary single-use plastics, Lieberg said,adding that the private sector must adopt business models thatreduce the downstream impact of their products. 

Manufacturers must also take responsibility forthe pollution that their products cause and make investments insustainable product design, he said. 

Citizens should demand sustainableproducts and exercise their buying power by refusing single-useplastics, he added.

Nicolas Audier, Chairman of the European Chamberof Commerce in Vietnam (EuroCham), said that “fully solving the plasticwaste problem will require a concerted effort from both public and privatesectors, Government and businesses, and households and communities”.

Ramkumar Dhruva, chairman of the Southeast Asia,ASEAN, Australia and New Zealand division at BASF, a Germanchemical company, said that a circular economy approach could reshape thefuture of plastics.

He said it was necessary to keep resourcesin use for as long as possible, minimise disposed residual waste, and extractthe maximum value from products, as well as recover and regenerate products andmaterials at the end of service life.

Nguyen Thanh Phuong, deputy head of the Southern Department of EnvironmentalProtection under the Vietnam Environment Administration, noted that Vietnam’s sustainabledevelopment strategy calls for a State-run Environmental Protection Fund tofinancially support environmental protection projects and activities.

Eligible projects must use environmentallyfriendly technologies and renewable energy, he said. 

“Vietnam aims to diversify investment sourcesfor environmental protection, and develop an economy towards greengrowth,” he said.

“We have seen a positive sign from theVietnamese business community lately, especially businesses using rice strawsor bamboo straws instead of plastic straws, wrapping vegetables with bananaleaves.” 

A Vietnamese manufacturer is nowmaking micro-bags, micro-spoons and microbiological paper cups toreplace ordinary plastic products, according to Phuong. 

Tomaso Andreatta, vice-chairman of EuroCham, andchairman of EuroCham’s Green Growth Sector Committee, said local companieswhose business revolves around plastics are starting to “produce fullybiodegradable or reusable plastics”. 

Business initiatives, especially in thepackaging industry, would make a huge impact on plastic waste management,he said. 

Consumers, families and organisations, and thecompanies serving them have to change the way they dispose ofthings they no longer need, he added. 

The ultimate goal is “zero waste”. Reuse as muchas possible, and transform plastics into something else, including energy,experts recommended. 

More than 100 representatives from theGovernment, international organisations, and the business community tookpart in the conference “Plastic Waste – How Public and Private Sectors Can HelpAddress the Issue”.

Organised by EuroCham, theevent shared the best practices from around the world on dealing with plasticwaste and improving the environment for the benefit of all.-VNS/VNA