‘Needed to act yesterday’: Can a plastic tax stop Australia’s waste tsunami?

Australians know life in plastic is not fantastic but every year the nation continues to use more, prompting researchers to look to Europe for ways to cut down.

The population already consumes 3.8 million tonnes of plastic every year, and that number is expected to more than double to nearly 10 million tonnes by 2050.

Though recycling has long been touted as a potential solution, less than a fifth of plastic waste is recovered through recycling, composting or other methods.

Australia Institute’s circular economy and waste program director Nina Gbor says drastic change is needed for the nation to meet its goal of recovering 70% of all plastic packaging by 2025.

“Australia is facing a growing tsunami of plastic waste,” Gbor said.

“The government needed to act yesterday and should start by following the EU’s lead.”

Research from the institute has found that a tax on plastic packaging, similar to those implemented in the European Union, could solve the nation’s waste issue while also raising billions.

In 2021, the EU introduced a levy requiring member nations to pay about $1300 for every tonne of plastic packaging waste that was not recycled.

If the Australian government introduced a similar user-pays tax on businesses that import or manufacture plastic packaging, it could raise $1.46 billion and reduce plastic waste, the institute says.

Though 85% of Australians polled by the institute backed measures that would crack down on plastic like legislated waste reduction targets for producers, suppliers and retailers, it is unclear if a tax would receive the same support.

But either way, Gbor says Australia can no longer rely on recycling schemes as the main solution.

“If recycling was the solution to the plastic waste crisis, it would have been solved by now,” she said.

“Instead, it just encourages the production and consumption of even more waste that is choking our landfill and oceans.

“We know that Australians support tougher action to curb plastic waste and that taxes and schemes requiring producers to fund the collection and recycling of plastic they produce are working overseas.”

This article was first published by AAP.