IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/cpn/umkeip/v19y2020i1p7-20.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Plastic waste as a challenge for sustainable development and circularity in the European Union

Author

Listed:
  • Bernadeta Baran

    (Wroclaw University of Economics and Business)

Abstract

Motivation: Plastics are valuable materials covering a wide range of applications in everyday life and have the potential to be recycled many times while retaining their value and functional properties. However, the scale of the problem associated with improper management of plastic waste in the EU is enormous, which entails economic costs (the potential associated with the recycling of plastic waste remains largely unexploited) and irreversible losses for the environment. Solving the problems of plastic waste becomes the strategic goal of the EU, which takes action to support transition towards a circular economy and adopts first-ever Europe-wide strategy on plastics. These issues are current and important. Aim: The aim of the article is to assess the previous efficiency of plastic waste management in the EU countries which, so far, results from the implementation of national policies. The Strategy for Plastic waste will be also discussed as a response to contemporary challenges and as an element of achieving the goals of sustainable development and circular economy. Results: In the last years, the efficiency of plastic waste management have improved but still a huge share of plastic is wasted. The challenge is to increase recycling rates and to change unfavorable structure of plastic waste reuse: at this time energy recovery rate (41.6%) is still higher than the recycling rate (31.1%), and the recycling rate only slightly exceeds the landfill rate (27.3%). The second problem concerns single-use plastic packaging which accounts for about 60.0% of the plastic waste in the EU. Adopting first ever European plastics strategy, the EU addresses environmental problems and solutions to help the transition to a CE. The goals are ambitious but realistic to meet in the coming years. They can bring a real change but at the same time this is just the beginning of the process.

Suggested Citation

  • Bernadeta Baran, 2020. "Plastic waste as a challenge for sustainable development and circularity in the European Union," Ekonomia i Prawo, Uniwersytet Mikolaja Kopernika, vol. 19(1), pages 7-20, March.
    • Handle: RePEc:cpn:umkeip:v:19:y:2020:i:1:p:7-20
    DOI: 10.12775/EiP.2020.001
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.12775/EiP.2020.001
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.12775/EiP.2020.001?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. repec:aud:audfin:v:20:y:2018:i:48:p:248 is not listed on IDEAS
    2. Nancy M. P. Bocken & Elsa A. Olivetti & Jonathan M. Cullen & José Potting & Reid Lifset, 2017. "Taking the Circularity to the Next Level: A Special Issue on the Circular Economy," Journal of Industrial Ecology, Yale University, vol. 21(3), pages 476-482, June.
    3. Mariana Vu?a & Mihai Vuta & Adrian Enciu & Sorin-Iulian Cioaca, 2018. "Assessment of the Circular Economy’s Impact in the EU Economic Growth," The AMFITEATRU ECONOMIC journal, Academy of Economic Studies - Bucharest, Romania, vol. 20(48), pages 248-248.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Jeff Mangers & Meysam Minoufekr & Peter Plapper & Sri Kolla, 2021. "An Innovative Strategy Allowing a Holistic System Change towards Circular Economy within Supply-Chains," Energies, MDPI, vol. 14(14), pages 1-17, July.
    2. Sultan Çetin & Catherine De Wolf & Nancy Bocken, 2021. "Circular Digital Built Environment: An Emerging Framework," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(11), pages 1-34, June.
    3. Ahmad, Farhan & Bask, Anu & Laari, Sini & Robinson, Craig V., 2023. "Business management perspectives on the circular economy: Present state and future directions," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 187(C).
    4. Marit Moe Bjørnbet & Sigurd Sagen Vildåsen, 2021. "Life Cycle Assessment to Ensure Sustainability of Circular Business Models in Manufacturing," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(19), pages 1-13, October.
    5. Vishal V. Agrawal & Atalay Atasu & Luk N. Van Wassenhove, 2019. "OM Forum—New Opportunities for Operations Management Research in Sustainability," Service Science, INFORMS, vol. 21(1), pages 1-12, January.
    6. Mohammadreza Akbari & John L. Hopkins, 2022. "Digital technologies as enablers of supply chain sustainability in an emerging economy," Operations Management Research, Springer, vol. 15(3), pages 689-710, December.
    7. Gilbert Silvius & Aydan Ismayilova & Vicente Sales-Vivó & Micol Costi, 2021. "Exploring Barriers for Circularity in the EU Furniture Industry," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(19), pages 1-25, October.
    8. Marina P. P. Pieroni & Tim C. McAloone & Daniela C. A. Pigosso, 2019. "Configuring New Business Models for Circular Economy through Product–Service Systems," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(13), pages 1-22, July.
    9. Wisdom Kanda & Martin Geissdoerfer & Olof Hjelm, 2021. "From circular business models to circular business ecosystems," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 30(6), pages 2814-2829, September.
    10. Serdar Türkeli & Martine Schophuizen, 2019. "Decomposing the Complexity of Value: Integration of Digital Transformation of Education with Circular Economy Transition," Social Sciences, MDPI, vol. 8(8), pages 1-22, August.
    11. Andreea Stoican, 2020. "The natural environment. The development of an institutional protection framework - a permanent concern of the European Union," Juridical Tribune (Tribuna Juridica), Bucharest Academy of Economic Studies, Law Department, vol. 10(1), pages 94-101, March.
    12. Tihana Škrinjarić, 2021. "Ranking Environmental Aspects of Sustainable Tourism: Case of Selected European Countries," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(10), pages 1-19, May.
    13. Alissa Kendall & Edward S. Spang, 2020. "The role of industrial ecology in food and agriculture's adaptation to climate change," Journal of Industrial Ecology, Yale University, vol. 24(2), pages 313-317, April.
    14. Florian Lüdeke‐Freund & Stefan Gold & Nancy M. P. Bocken, 2019. "A Review and Typology of Circular Economy Business Model Patterns," Journal of Industrial Ecology, Yale University, vol. 23(1), pages 36-61, February.
    15. Julie Marin & Bruno De Meulder, 2018. "Interpreting Circularity. Circular City Representations Concealing Transition Drivers," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(5), pages 1-24, April.
    16. Erik G. Hansen & Ferdinand Revellio, 2020. "Circular value creation architectures: Make, ally, buy, or laissez‐faire," Journal of Industrial Ecology, Yale University, vol. 24(6), pages 1250-1273, December.
    17. Gonca Yılmaz, 2023. "Which Factors Drive The Resource Efficiency in Circular Economy? A Panel Data Regression Analysis," EKOIST Journal of Econometrics and Statistics, Istanbul University, Faculty of Economics, vol. 0(38), pages 19-34, June.
    18. Simona Fortunati & Laura Martiniello & Donato Morea, 2020. "The Strategic Role of the Corporate Social Responsibility and Circular Economy in the Cosmetic Industry," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(12), pages 1-28, June.
    19. Rikke Marie Moalem & Mette Alberg Mosgaard, 2021. "A Critical Review of the Role of Repair Cafés in a Sustainable Circular Transition," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(22), pages 1-25, November.
    20. Sabina Scarpellini, 2022. "Social impacts of a circular business model: An approach from a sustainability accounting and reporting perspective," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 29(3), pages 646-656, May.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    plastics; circular economy; sustainable development;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • Q53 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Environmental Economics - - - Air Pollution; Water Pollution; Noise; Hazardous Waste; Solid Waste; Recycling
    • Q57 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Environmental Economics - - - Ecological Economics
    • Q5 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Environmental Economics

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:cpn:umkeip:v:19:y:2020:i:1:p:7-20. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Miroslawa Buczynska (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.wydawnictwoumk.pl .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.