WASTE VALUE CHAIN MANAGEMENT

Ocean plastic waste pollution, overcrowded landfills, air pollution from burning garbage… all come from gaps in domestic waste management in Vietnam. With practical experience and study of policy lessons in the world, we believe that waste problems will be improved through waste management mechanism along the value chain, thereby creating a circular economy. CECR is one of the pioneers in Vietnam to address the approach to waste management through promoting the circular economy and extended producer responsibility mechanism (EPR).

In 2018, after CECR’s study tour in Korea, CECR had sharing seminars on the Korean experience in the circular economy to the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, Da Nang Department of Natural Resources and Environment, and the Vietnam Women’s Union. In 2019, CECR collaborated with ISPONRE to conduct a study on “Instructions, policies, measures and status of solid waste management of some countries in the world. Evaluation of the effectiveness of implementation and problems for Vietnam”. One of the prominent recommendations from this study is as follows: “From a financial perspective: The polluter pays principle is adopted. Pollutants including manufacturers, importers, exporters, and food businesses that have to bear the cost of waste treatment must perform extended producer responsibility (EPR).” In order to have policy recommendations on waste management along the value chain in a practical and suitable way for Vietnam, since 2018, CECR has been developing and implementing a plastic waste management model, especially low-value plastic waste along the value chain that attracts the participation of state agencies, communities, recycling businesses, and informal collectors.

Our typical projects/programs in the fields of:

This model has been applied in Da Nang (Son Tra Dist., Thanh Khe Dist., Hoa Vang Dist., Tho Quang lock and fishing port); in Hanoi (Hoan Kiem Dist. and Nam Tu Liem Dist.). The plastic waste management model along the value chain has been implemented through CECR’s projects including: Plastic-Free Ocean Project -Program to collect, sort and recycle plastic waste for a healthy community and a green city (2017 – 2018, funded by USAID and implemented in Da Nang); National Cooperation Program to establish economic model of plastic waste circulation in Vietnam (2020 – 2022, sponsored by DOW and implemented in Hoan Kiem Dist., Hanoi); Enhancing the role of women in solutions to reduce plastic waste pollution through sustainable sorting and recycling (2021 – 2023, funded by OC and implemented in Nam Tu Liem Dist., Hanoi).