Plastic Waste Management: Rules and Guidelines For Registration

Any plastic (polyethylene terephthalate, high density polyethylene, polyvinyl, low density polyethylene, polypropylene, polystyrene resins, multi-materials such as acrylonitrile butadiene styrene, polyphenylene oxide, polycarbonate, Polybutylene terephthalate) discarded after use or after their intended use is over is referred to as plastic waste.

The Plastic Waste Management Rules, 2016, have been notified by the government, updating the former Plastic Waste (Management and Handling) Rules, 2011. On March 18th, 2016, the Plastic Waste Management Rules were published. 

Condition for Registration under Rule 4

The following conditions apply to the manufacture, import, stocking, distribution, sale, and use of carry bags, plastic sheets, and multilayered packaging (form under the rule http://www.moef.gov.in/sites/default/files/pwm%20rules%2c%202016.pdf):

1. Carry bags and plastic packaging must be either natural in color (with no additional pigments) or made with just those pigments and colorants that meet Indian standards.
2. Recycled plastic carry bags or items shall not be used for storing, carrying, dispensing, or packaging ready-to-eat or drink food’;
3.  A carry bag made of virgin or recycled plastic must have a thickness of at least fifty microns;
4. Plastic sheet used for packaging, wrapping the commodity that is not an integral part of multilayered packaging and cover made of plastic sheet used for packaging, wrapping the commodity shall not be less than fifty microns in thickness, unless the thickness of such plastic sheets affects the product’s functionality;
5. A manufacturer may not sell, provide, or arrange for the use of plastic as a raw material to a producer who does not have a valid registration from the State Pollution Control Boards or Pollution Control Committee.
6. Plastic sachets may not be used for storing, packing, or selling gutkha, tobacco, or pan masala;
7. Plastic waste must be recycled in accordance with Indian standards.
8. The thickness requirement does not apply to carry bags made of biodegradable plastic. The Indian Standard IS 17088:2008, titled Specifications for Biodegradable Plastics, as revised from time to time, and applies to carry bags manufactured of compostable plastics. Before marketing or selling biodegradable plastic carry bags, the manufacturer or seller must get a certificate from the Central Pollution Control Board; and
9.  Plastic materials, especially Vinyl Acetate – Maleic Acid – Vinyl Chloride Copolymer, are not permitted to be used in any packaging for gutkha, pan masala, or tobacco in any form.

RULES FOR THE MANAGEMENT OF PLASTIC WASTE

These rules apply to every waste generator, local body, Gram Panchayat, manufacturer, importer, and producer, with the goal of promoting plastic waste minimization, source segregation, recycling, and engaging waste pickers, recyclers, and waste processors in the collection of plastic waste fractions from residents or any other source of generation or intermediate material recovery facility.

REGISTRATION OF PLASTIC WASTE

As per the Plastic Waste Management Rules, no one may manufacture carry bags, recycle plastic bags, or multilayered packaging unless they first obtain a registration from the State Pollution Control Board or the Pollution Control Committee of the Union Territory.

• Producer registration: Every producer must submit a Form I of Plastic waste management registration to the State Pollution Control Board (in state) or the Pollution Control Committee (in Union territory) concerned for registration or renewal of registration.
• Registration of recyclers: Every person recycling or processing garbage, or proposing to recycle or process plastic waste (recyclers), must submit a Form II application to the State Pollution Control Board or the Pollution Control Committee for the grant or renewal of a recycling unit’s registration.
• Plastics manufacturer to be used as a raw material by the producer (Form III): Every manufacturer of plastic planned for use as a raw material by the producer must submit a Form III application to the State Pollution Control Board or the Pollution Control Committee of the Union territory concerned for the grant of registration or the renewal of registration.

Producers, importers, and brand owners must meet certain requirements.

Existing producers must figure out methods for waste collection systems based on Extended Producers Responsibility and engaging State Urban Development Departments, either individually or collectively, through their own distribution platform or through the local body concerned, within a six-month period beginning March 18, 2016.

• Producers, importers, and brand owners are responsible for collecting used multi-layered plastic sachets, pouches, or packaging. When applying for Consent to Establish, Operate, or Renewal, a system for collecting trash generated by their product must be established, and a plan for such a system must be presented to the State Pollution Control Boards.
• In two years, the manufacture and usage of non-recyclable multilayered plastic must be phased out.
•  The existing producer must file an application for registration to the Pollution Control Board or the Pollution Control Committee, as the case may be, of the State or Union Territories administration concerned.
• On and after the expiration of a six-month period beginning March 18, 2016, no producer may make or use any plastic or multilayered packaging for commodity packaging without first obtaining permission from the applicable State Pollution Control Board or Pollution Control Committees.
• Every producer must keep track of the details of the individual who supplies the plastic used as a raw material for carry bags.