Plastic waste rules released

The Ministry of Environment and Forests has notified the Plastic Waste (Management and Handling) Rules, 2011, to replace the earlier Recycled Plastics Manufacture and Usage Rules, 1999 (amended in 2003). These Rules have been brought out following detailed discussions and consultations with a wide spectrum of stakeholders including civil society, industry bodies, relevant Central Government Ministries and State Governments. Releasing the Rules, Minister for Environment and Forests Jairam Ramesh said, “It is impractical and undesirable to impose a blanket ban on the use of plastic all over the country. The real challenge is to improve municipal solid waste management systems. In addition to the privatisation and mechanisation of the municipal solid waste, management systems must be sensitive to the needs and concerns of the lakhs of people involved in the informal sector.”