At the event, which was themed "Don’t make plastic into garbage," Dr. Nguyen Thi Chinh, the vice president of VACHE, said that plastic used to be considered a landmark invention of mankind, however, the lack of awareness has turned plastic into a cause of negative impacts on ecosystems, habitats, human health and sustainable development. There have been movements to limit plastic waste that have brought about certain results but restricting and replacing plastic completely is not feasible and not suitable for economic development goals.
Sharing the same viewpoint, Nguyen An Thai from the Vietnam Atomic Energy Institute said that there have been significant improvements in the search for plastic alternatives. However, to completely replace plastic from life is hard because of the high costs and replacement materials only meeting minimal demands for plastic nowadays.
Nguyen Thi, from the Department of Legislation, under the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment (MONRE), said that there is a lack of regulations regarding classification of plastics in Vietnam, including in use as raw materials as well as in the classification and recycling of plastic waste, making it hard to manage.
Experts presented research and applications to increase the plastic life cycle, as well as initiatives to collect, recycle and reuse plastic waste. They also proposed the development of preferential policies for enterprises in recycling plastic materials and limiting harm to the environment.
Nguyen Thanh Tung, the head of the Department of Policy and Legislation under the Vietnam Administration of Seas and Islands, said that the MONRE ministry has been developing national action plans to submit to the Government on reducing ocean plastic waste by 2020 and establishing an international centre for plastic waste headquartered in Vietnam.
Through international conferences and ASEAN events on the environment, Vietnam wishes to be known around the world as one of the leading countries in the fight against plastic waste in general and ocean plastic waste in particular, he added.
