TN to assess compliance of ban on single-use plastics

CHENNAI: Although it’s been nearly two years since TN government imposed a ban on single-use plastics products, compliance has been poor. The government has now roped in a private firm, Pricewatercoopers (PWC), to set up a project management consultancy (PMC) to scrutinise compliance and advise urban local bodies on necessary interventions at district level. 

Speaking to TNIE on the sidelines of the two-day Eco-alternatives Expo and Start-up Conference, environment secretary Supriya Sahu said there was no mechanism to monitor compliance of the plastic ban at district level. “We receive volumes of data, but there is no in-house expertise to crunch this data and analyse them for policy makers like us to make informed decisions. The PMC will do the third party monitoring and provide periodical reports on local bodies. This will allow us to precisely know where the things are going wrong and do the necessary course correction.”

TN was one of the first states to push for bringing all the producers, importers and brand owners (PIBOs) under the ambit of Extended Producers’ Responsibility (EPR) framework. Sahu said she took a review of EPR compliance two weeks back. “Lots of PIBOs did register themselves under the EPR framework, but there were gaps in their compliance.” Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board (TNPCB) has recently issued an advisory and so far around 40 companies got themselves registered, said TNPCB chairman M Jayanthi. 

Naresh Pal Gangwar, Additional Secretary of Union Environment Ministry, told TNIE at the national level around 2,000 PIBOs registered in the exclusive portal created by Central Pollution Control Board. “Slowly, things are improving and an ecosystem is being created where the problematic plastic waste is recycled, reused through buy-back mechanisms or other means. Under EPR framework, the companies will have to collect the waste, get it recycled and obtain the certificate from the respective PCBs as part of their compliance.”