Full circle: Challenges and prospects for plastic waste management in Australia to achieve circular economy

Plastic manufacturing accounts for 6% of global oil consumption and is one of the world's fastest-growing waste streams. As the global supply of fossil fuels becomes critical, it is important to quantify how virgin plastic made from fossil fuel sources is recovered, reused, and remanufactured. In this study, the authors undertook the first systematic literature review of Australia's plastic waste (PW) management system to assess challenges and opportunities in moving towards a circular economy. Sources included government reports, industry survey reports, academic research articles, and national household and waste data. Results of the study showed that despite the sharp exponential growth in consumption of plastics (3.5 million tonnes (Mt) in 2018–19), Australia's national recovery rate is only 11.5%, which leaves substantial room for improvement. From 2007 to 2019, average PW generation was just over 2.6 Mt and in 2019, the generation was close to 2.55 Mt. In terms of polymer types, high-density polyethylene (HDPE) generated the most, followed by polyethylene terephthalate (PET) and low-density polyethylene (LDPE). Close to half (47%) the volume of plastic waste is generated by households (specifically, PET and HDPE). Market growth was of biodegradable plastics is much slower than expected. Most recycling facilities use mechanical recycling as the main processing technology, and more facilities are required to process PET (especially in NSW and Victoria). The construction (built environment) sector consumes the largest quantity of recycled plastics; however, local recycled material use was only 10% in all the Australian sectors. Plastic waste is also used for energy recovery, with polyethylene (PE), polypropylene (PP) and polystyrene (PS). This study also discusses the benefits of implementing state-of-the-art processing facilities using diversified recycling technology; vertical integration of plastic manufacturers and pre-processors; regulatory and structural reform; and development of local manufacturing industries using recycled plastics. It is incompetent to efficiently resolve the Australian plastic waste problem with simply bans, it is a global cross-sectoral issue that calls for cross-departmental cooperation. The future of plastic waste management not only relies on the effectiveness of local government and recyclers, but also on community involvement, and initiatives on national, regional, and global level. Numerous stakeholders including industry insiders, governments, customs agencies, regulators, intergovernmental organizations, non-governmental organizations, and civil society need to be involved.