Dr. Jerome L. Montemayor
Executive Director, ASEAN Centre for Biodiversity
Plastics are all around us. Since its introduction, plastics have been a big part of our daily activities. From everyday consumer products to different industry applications, and even in healthcare, it is difficult to imagine life without plastic. However, the increasing production, consumption, and subsequent disposal of plastics have become a serious global threat to both people and the planet.
As we celebrate World Environment Day this year, the ASEAN Centre for Biodiversity (ACB) reaffirms its commitment and joins the call of the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) for a just transition to a circular economy of plastics to reduce plastic pollution and its impacts.
According to UNEP, annual global plastic production and the amount of plastic waste doubled in 2019 compared to 2000. If this trend continues, it is expected to triple by 2060. It has also been reported that around 8 million metric tons of mismanaged plastics enter the ocean annually. This makes up around 80 per cent of waste in the ocean, affecting fishing, shipping, tourism, and the livelihoods of coastal communities.
According to a report from the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services, marine pollution has increased tenfold since the 1980s. This has affected hundreds of marine turtles, seabirds, and other marine mammals. More than 60 per cent of fish sampled worldwide contain microplastics, which pose potential health risks to marine life and humans. These microplastics can pass toxic chemicals to marine life and enter the human food chain through seafood consumption. Microplastic contamination has been linked to various human health problems, including inflammation and disruption of hormonal systems.
Unfortunately, studies show that a huge chunk of the world’s ocean plastic pollution originates from Southeast Asia. Therefore, addressing plastic waste in the region is vital for its sustainable growth and the overall well-being of the planet.
A regional plan of action
In response to this pressing transboundary concern, the ASEAN has committed to addressing this environmental issue by adopting the Bangkok Declaration on Combating Marine Debris in the ASEAN Region and the ASEAN Framework of Action on Marine Debris in 2019. This led to the development of the ASEAN Regional Action Plan for Combating Marine Debris in 2021. Through an integrated approach, this five-year plan aims to enhance coordination at the regional and international levels to achieve sustainable management of coastal and marine environments by responding to marine plastic pollution.
The ASEAN has also released the ASEAN Guidelines on Green Meetings for ASEAN Member States (AMS), ASEAN bodies and centres, and other organisations hosting ASEAN-related events to be more environmentally friendly and resource-efficient. Furthermore, the ASEAN Blue Economy Framework reaffirms the commitment of the AMS to address the plastic crisis. Since this concern goes beyond national borders, fostering cross-country cooperation and policy alignment within the region is crucial.
The ASEAN ENMAPS Project
Plastic pollution threatens coral reefs, seagrass beds, and mangroves. These are core ecosystems that the Effectively Managing Networks of Marine Protected Areas in Large Marine Ecosystems in the ASEAN region (ASEAN ENMAPS) project intends to protect.
As part of the project’s commitment to safeguarding biodiversity and reducing threats to marine ecosystems in Southeast Asia, it incorporates targeted actions to tackle plastic pollution, particularly in areas around marine protected areas. In addition, ASEAN ENMAPS supports local and national initiatives that promote circular and sustainable economies.
Launched in 2024, ASEAN ENMAPS is a regional initiative to safeguard Southeast Asia’s marine biodiversity by strengthening marine protected areas (MPAs), building local capacity for sustainable marine management, and promoting science-based and inclusive conservation. It is implemented by the UNDP in Asia and the Pacific through the funding of the Global Environment Facility and with the ACB as the executing agency.
The Small Grants Programme by the ASEAN Centre for Biodiversity I and II
The ACB also implements another programme that helps ensure proper solid waste disposal, including plastics, in select ASEAN Heritage Parks (AHPs) in Myanmar and Viet Nam. This is the Small Grants Programme by the ASEAN Centre for Biodiversity (SGP I), which became instrumental in addressing the growing water pollution problem in Indawgyi Lake Wildlife Sanctuary.
Surrounded by 36 villages with over 50,000 people, improper solid waste disposal has constantly impacted the lake over the years. Through the support of SGP I, local communities engaged in an extensive awareness-raising campaign that produced “waste heroes,” who led waste management efforts in these communities. Through these campaigns, over 10,000 students across 24 schools in 20 villages have adopted proper waste disposal practices, and more communities have participated in regular waste collection activities that sustained these initiatives.
The partners of SGP II in Viet Nam are making a similar effort to preserve the beauty of the Ba Be National Park. Guided by a local ordinance on strengthening plastic waste prevention and control, three villages were taught about the harmful effects of plastics on the environment, trained on waste segregation, and provided with protective equipment to aid them in implementing the project effectively.
What can we do together?
As we celebrate World Environment Day, the ACB calls on governments, businesses, and communities across ASEAN to continue taking bold steps to foster a whole-of-society approach towards reducing plastic waste.
Taking off from the ASEAN Regional Action Plan for Combating Marine Debris, this plastic problem requires integrated solutions across the whole plastic value chain. We need to strengthen regulatory frameworks, scale up innovative solutions, and continuously conduct education and public awareness campaigns to facilitate a system-wide transformation towards a more responsible production and consumption of plastics and management of waste products.
In our own simple ways, in our households, schools, and places of work, we too can act and beat plastic pollution. We can start by being mindful of reducing our plastic waste footprint, refusing or reducing our consumption of single-use plastics, effectively reusing and recycling plastic products to be part of a circular economy, and by practising responsible waste management.
As we celebrate the beauty and value of our natural environment today, let us also renew our commitment to beat plastic pollution by working for a cleaner, healthier, and more sustainable future for ASEAN and beyond.
