A comprehensive deposit return scheme in England could prevent 6,600 tonnes of plastic waste entering rivers and the sea by 2030, according to an analysis of the government’s proposed waste strategy.
Of the measures being considered by the government to tackle plastic pollution, the assessment by the charity Common Seas reveals that a DRS on all drinks containers, not just small bottles, would have the most dramatic impact.
Being introduced in 2020, a ban on straws, stirrers and cotton buds would effectively remove the items from the market, the report says, and stem their flow into the waterways.
The report, which has been shared with Defra, identifies and maps plastic waste flows and leakage, assesses the effectiveness of policy interventions and allows governments to see which methods work best to reduce plastic pollution.
The report says the government should ensure that any deposit return scheme applies to all drinks containers, not just “on the go” bottles containing less than 750ml. The government has yet to decide what form of DRS it will adopt.
“The deposit should be set at a high enough level to stimulate behaviour – eg 20p was proposed in Scotland – and the return infrastructure should be made convenient so as to incentivise a high rate of return.”
But the government’s proposed strategy fails to address major sources of plastic pollution into the seas, from tyre dust, plastic pellets from manufacturing and microfibres from clothes and wet wipes.
Tyre dust is the greatest contributor to plastic pollution in rivers and seas, the report says, with about 14,000 tonnes of plastic entering watercourses each year from the impact of driving and cars on the roads. The government’s waste strategy does not address this key contributor to plastic pollution.
“The impact of the strategy is zero or small for both tyre dust and plastic pellets,” the report said.
“This small impact is driven significantly by the challenges in preventing the flows of microplastic pollution into the watercourse. “Microplastics, such as those generated from the wear of tyres and textiles are emitted in high volumes and their small size makes them hard to manage … there are currently no alternatives that would eliminate tyre dust … other than through modal shifts and reduced use of transport.”
The report said standards could be introduced for clothing fibre to ensure a good quality is in place to reduce the amount of microfibres released. The aim would be to create a threshold where the worst performing clothes were removed from the market. It also suggested fibre-release data on labels to give consumers information about which were the worst products in terms of leakage of microplastics, and encourage a shift in consumer preference.
The report suggested banning wet wipes or applying taxes to the product to reduce demand and encourage consumers to use reusable alternatives.
Jo Royle, from Common Seas, said: “We must make sure our energy is focused on the most impactful interventions. We don’t have time to be ineffective – the crisis we’re facing gets worse every day.
“Our initiative … tackles this problem by helping the right people make better decisions about which policies to implement for maximum impact.”
Defra said it had commissioned further research to examine how marine pollution from tyre dust, synthetic materials such as polyester, and fishing gear enters our waterways and oceans.
“We have made great strides to tackle plastic pollution in our oceans, introducing one of the toughest bans on microbeads in the world,” Defra said.
“We will consider this report carefully as we look at how we can address different forms of microplastics, including particles from tyres. This is alongside ambitious plans to ban plastic straws, drink stirrers, and plastic stemmed cotton buds and tackle plastic bottle waste.”
