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Regulations on packaging, food and e-waste

Paia Consulting hosted our very first online breakfast briefing together with guest speaker and environmental lawyer Joseph Chun on 15th April 2020, introducing the new waste regulations under Singapore’s Resource Sustainability Act.

Singapore’s only landfill, the Semakau landfill, is predicted to run out of space by 2035 at current waste generation rates. To reduce the amount of waste generated in Singapore, the Ministry of Environment and Water Resources published a Zero Waste Masterplan in 2019, Singapore’s designated Year of Zero Waste. The plan outlines a series of measures that the Singapore government will take in order to reduce waste (per capita) sent to landfill by 30% by 2030.

As part of the masterplan, the Resource Sustainability Act was introduced to accelerate the reduction of waste in three priority waste streams: electronic, packaging and food waste. The Act partially came into force on 1st January 2020 and will first require producers of regulated electrical and electronic products to be responsible for the collection and treatment of their products when they become waste, from July 2021. Companies that introduce packaging material into the Singapore market will eventually be required to do something similar by 2025, but as a first step, they are required to collect and report information on the type and amount of packaging material that they place on the Singapore market, as well as plans to reduce packaging waste, from 2022*[1].

The Act also requires commercial and industrial premises generating large amounts of food waste to properly segregate and treat food waste from 2021. New buildings will be required to allow for on-site treatment of food waste from 2024.

On the day of our breakfast briefing, figures released by the National Environment Agency (NEA) showed that about 7.23 million tonnes of solid waste was generated last year compared to about 7.7 million tonnes in 2018, making this the third yearly reduction since 2017. Will the Singapore Resource Sustainability Act see a continued decrease of waste generated in Singapore?

Paia Consulting has experience working with companies on materials and waste reporting and strategy. Whether you are affected by the new regulations or would simply like strategic support in helping your company reduce waste, we can help you. Contact us to find out more.

[1] Original timeline of 2021 has been revised due to COVID-19

The public and private sector, to increase focus on waste reduction

On World Environment Day this year, both the public and private sectors in Singapore upped up their efforts for environmental protection with a series of plans and initiatives. These include:

  • the unveiling of the Public Sector Sustainability Plan 2017-2020 by Deputy Prime Minister Teo Chee Hean,
  • the introduction of mandatory reporting of packaging data and packaging waste reduction plans and the Logo for Products with Reduced Packaging by National Environment Agency,
  • the launch of ReCYCLE, a nationwide electronic waste recycling programme by Singapore Post and Singtel
  • the official opening of the Singapore Sustainability Academy by CDL and Sustainability Energy Association ofSingapore.

Under the Public Sector Sustainability Plan, environmental targets are set with regards to the use of electricity, water, building, waste and solar energy for FY2020 and achieve them through better resource management. Transparency and Disclosure is one of the main components guiding the Plan [1]; we can expect progress against targets to be communicated. The Plan reinforces Singapore’s commitment to the Paris Agreement of reducing emissions intensity by 36 per cent by 2030 from 2005 levels [2].

The Public Sector Sustainability Plan is published by the Ministry of Environment and Water Resources (MEWR), under the Sustainable Singapore campaign.

The National Environment Agency, an agency under MEWR, also introduced initiatives to reduce packaging waste. The launch of the Logo for Products with Reduced Packaging (LPRP) will help inform consumers of products that has reduced packaging and hence generate less waste. Mandatory reporting of packaging data and packaging waste reduction plans will also be introduced by 2021, for businesses that uses packaging on consumer goods [3].

The announcement of mandatory reporting of packaging data and Waste Reduction Plans by 2021 was made by Mr Masagos Zulkifli, Minister for the Environment and Water Resources, during the 10th Anniversary celebrations of the Singapore Packaging Agreement (SPA) [1]. Reduction of packaging waste makes business sense for winners of the 10th SPA awards.  Greenpac for example avoids 4.13 tonnes of packaging material and reaps about $17,200 a year in material cost savings after redesigning a microscope packaging to use lighter polypropylene (PP) corrugated sheets instead of wood [4]. Sunfresh Singapore has estimated annual cost savings of $1,320 with a reduction of 0.28 tonne of plastic packaging waste by eliminating plastic liners in their deliveries of aluminium cups [4].

Given that one-third of about 1.66 million tonnes of waste disposed in 2016 by Singapore was packaging waste [1], these initiatives are appropriate and timely.

Waste reduction was the theme of some initiatives by the private sector as well.

Singapore Post and Singtel for instance launched ReCYCLE, a nationwide electronic waste recycling programme. Consumers can now drop unwanted electronic devices into the ReCYCLE bins at selected Singtel outlets and Post Offices at no charge. Valuable metals and components in the devices would be recovered [5].

At the official opening of the Singapore Sustainability Academy (SSA), winners of the 6th CDL Singapore Sculpture Awards presented artwork that utilised the SSA’s residual building materials, in line with this year’s theme of ‘Towards Zero-Waste!’ [6].

The SSA is a training and networking facility on sustainability jointly created by City Developments Limited (CDL) and the Sustainable Energy Association of Singapore (SEAS), a non-profit organisation. Among other sustainability-related events, the SSA will be a platform for CDL’s Women4Green initiative, the first sustainability network for women in Singapore. The SSA will also partner Eco-Business to set up a Sustainability Studio for the production of sustainability-related films [6].

The ReCYCLE programme and the Singapore Sustainability Academy are great examples of how partnerships between sectors can work together to achieve better environmental outcome. Indeed, that collective effort by all sectors in the economy are required to make progress, and it is heartening to see initiatives by both the public and public sector this World Environment Day.

World Environment Day started in 1974 by the United Nations, and is celebrated on 5 June by over 100 countries every year [7].

 

References

[1] https://www.mewr.gov.sg/news/press-release—singapore-launches-sustainability-plan-to-chart-green-course-for-public-sector

[2] http://www.pmo.gov.sg/newsroom/dpm-teo-chee-hean-opening-ceremony-singapore-sustainability-academy

[3] http://www.nea.gov.sg/corporate-functions/newsroom/news-releases/nea-to-introduce-mandatory-reporting-of-packaging-data-waste-reduction-plans-by-2021

[4] Singapore Packaging Agreement, ‘3R Packaging Awards 2016’

[5] http://recycle.sg/

[6] http://www.cdl.com.sg/images/press_release/20170605.pdf

[7] http://worldenvironmentday.global/en/about/what-is-it