Amble down a side street or canal in Nigeria’s bustling commercial capital of Lagos and chances are you’ll find empty water sachets, used takeaway containers and other types of plastic packaging.
The litter is symptomatic of a larger plastic pollution crisis gripping the country of 227 million people, the most populous in Africa.
But things could start changing within the next few months. Nigeria is poised to introduce a series of regulations – developed with support from the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) – that will make companies that produce and use plastic packaging responsible for countering plastic pollution. Packaging is the single-largest source of plastic waste in the country, according to government data.
Nigeria is one of a growing number of countries that have embraced this type of legislation, known as extended producer responsibility. Pioneered in Europe more than three decades ago, extended producer responsibility regulations have helped some countries counter a wave of waste from plastic packaging and products, which was swamping municipalities. Nigeria’s leaders are hopeful the legislation will do the same there.
“Extended producer responsibility as a strategy shifts the responsibility of waste management to the producers, adopting the polluter pays principle,” said Innocent Barikor, Director General of Nigeria’s National Environmental Standards and Regulations Enforcement Agency.
During the last two decades, plastic production and plastics imports have surged in Nigeria, overburdening the country’s municipal waste management systems. Most of plastic waste in Nigeria is either burned, dumped in the open or tossed into water bodies, research suggests.
Nigeria’s new extended producer responsibility regulations will make companies part of the solution to addressing this pollution, not only municipalities. The regulations would require companies that produce, import, distribute and sell plastic packaging to fund what are known as producer responsibility organisations. These non-profit entities would then be tasked with reining in pollution from packaging, which is the source of 63 per cent of all plastic waste in the country, according to one government document, the National Guideline for the Implementation of the Extended Producer Responsibility Programme on Packaging (Plastic).
The extended producer responsibility regulations also call on companies to develop alternatives to plastic packaging and launch programmes to reuse containers. As well, plastic producers will be required to fund recycling efforts, make their packaging easier to recycle and use a minimum amount of recycled content.
Nigeria is now developing a plan to implement the regulations, with the support of UNEP. They are expected to come into force within the next few months, says Barikor.
Some countries have had extended producer responsibility laws for more than five decades. Along with plastic, the legislation has been used to rein in pollution from paper, batteries, appliances – even car parts.
One study from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) found some long-standing extended producer responsibility regulations have helped bolster recycling rates, relieved financial strain on overwhelmed municipalities and provided stable sources of funding for anti-pollution efforts.
One country that has seen success is France, which began applying extended producer responsibility laws to household waste in the early 1990s. The regulations have been credited with helping to drive up recycling rates. Today, France recycles 67 per cent of household packaging and 27 per cent of plastic, according to Citeo, a producer responsibility organisation in the country. The global rate for plastic recycling is 9 per cent, finds the OECD.
The French regulations have also spurred companies to address the root causes of plastic waste, encouraging firms to develop refill programmes, embrace more eco-friendly designs and find alternatives to plastics in certain products.
However, experts say extended producer responsibility by itself is not enough to end plastic pollution. They say it should be part of a larger suite of policy changes, including the phasing-out of unnecessary and problematic plastic products, the promotion of re-use or refill programmes, an overhaul of product design standards, and the improvement waste management standards.
“There is no single solution to plastic pollution,” says Elisa Tonda, the Chief of the Resources and Markets Branch at UNEP. “But extended producer responsibility is one of several important tools because it helps channel much-needed financial resources and business solutions into addressing this mounting crisis.”
UNEP provided Nigeria’s government with advice on how to structure and implement its extended producer responsibility regulations for plastic packaging. The effort received financial support from the Government of Japan and the Norwegian Retailers’ Environment Fund.
More than 40 food and beverage companies, along with plastics industry representatives, have already joined Nigeria’s Food and Beverage Recycling Alliance, a producer responsibility organisation, says Barikor. He expects those numbers to rise once the regulations come into force.
Several companies have taken steps to reduce plastic pollution, including by switching from coloured to clear plastic bottles, which are easier to recycle, he adds. Others have begun using up to 50 per cent recycled material in their packaging.
Challenges remain, though. Many plastic producers are still unaware of the programme and the Nigerian government needs to strengthen its ability to track compliance with the regulations, officials say.
“We won’t be shy to say that we need more capacity and more support for logistics in order to make this happen,” says Barikor. “However, with the collaboration and support of other federal government ministries, departments and agencies, as well as private and international organizations, we are confident to have a great, positive impact.”
By 2029, Nigeria is aiming to dramatically increase the amount of plastic products it collects and recycles. Among other targets, Barikor says bottles made from one common type of plastic, polyethylene terephthalate, should contain 25 per cent recycled material. That’s a nine-fold increase from today.
“We feel we have a programme that can work for the country, and if fully implemented, will make a positive difference in the lives of people and for the state of the environment,” says Barikor.