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Policy priorities: emerging trends in a global response
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This policy review examines global regulatory responses to plastic and microplastic pollution, identifying focal areas, gaps, and future directions by drawing parallels to historical policy development around air pollution management.
In an era focused on improvements in global sustainability, the uncontrolled growth of both plastic production and waste generation represents a significant obstacle. This is not without precedent as, historically, there are numerous examples of environmentally damaging activities and substances, the use of which has been perpetuated long after they were found to have substantial negative effects. In such cases, changes to both public behaviour and industrial standards have been reliant on the introduction of suitable public policy. In this chapter, we will review the current policy response to the combined issues of plastics and microplastics, highlighting the current focal areas, gaps and future directions, and compare this development to our previous response to the issue of air pollution.
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This critical review assembled current knowledge on policies and regulatory responses to plastic pollution globally, including legislative measures, economic instruments, and voluntary commitments. The authors identify a gap between scientific evidence and policy action and call for stronger, more coordinated international governance of plastic pollution.
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This chapter reviews existing research and policies on plastic pollution, including microplastics, at local, national, and global levels. It examines rules targeting single-use plastics and waste management, finding gaps in how these policies are put into practice and enforced, and calls for stronger coordinated legislative action.
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