For years, China has received a large amount of plastic waste from all over the world, recycle most of it into more advanced materials that manufacturers can use.

But in early 2018, the country denied most of its imported plastic waste, as well as recycling, in its efforts to protect the local environment and air quality, making it difficult for developed countries to find garbage. .

"It’s like an earthquake," Arnaud Brunet, general manager of the International Recycling Bureau, a Brussels-based industrial group, told AFP. "China is the largest market for recycled materials. This is a big sho‌ck to the international market ”.

Instead, a large amount of plastic waste is diverted to Southeast Asia, which is also where Chinese recyclers move waste.

With the large Chinese community, Malaysia is the first choice for Chinese recyclers looking for alternative locations, and official statistics show that the amount of imported plastic has tripled compared to 2006. , reached 870,000 tons last year.

In the small town of Jenjarom, not far from Kuala Lumpur, plastic processing plants suddenly appear massively, emitting toxic fumes day and night.

Scrap mountains are dumped outdoors when recyclers struggle with the wave of plastic packaging from everyday products, such as food and detergent, coming from distant countries like Germany, the US and Brazil.

People quickly noticed a strong odor all over town - the kind of smell that is common when handling plastics, but environmental activists say that part of the emissions comes from burning unqualified plastic waste. processing.

“People are poisoned by emissions, causing them to wake up every night. Many people have an uninterrupted cough, ”said Pua Lay Peng, a local resident.

"I can’t sleep, can’t rest, I always feel tired," the 47-year-old said.

Poison gas

Pua and the locals began searching and by mid-2018, 40 plants were suspected of handling waste. Most appear to be sneaky and not fully licensed.

Initial complaints did not yield any results, but increased pressure caused the government to finally take action. Authorities began closing illegal factories in Jenjarom, and declared a temporary ban on imported waste.

There have been 33 factories closed, although supporters believe that most of them have quietly moved elsewhere. People said that air quality has improved but some landfills still remain.

In Australia, Europe and the US, the majority of people collecting scrap and recycling materials are urgently looking for alternative addresses.

They have to pay a higher price for recycling in the locality, and sometimes have to transport garbage to landfills because of the amount of waste dumped so quickly.

"A year has passed, we still see the impact but have not found a solution," said Garth Lamb, chairman of the Australian as‌sociation for Waste Management and Resource Recovery.

Some people have quickly adapted to the new environment, such as some local government centers that specialize in collecting recyclables in Adelaide, the southern Australian city.

These centers have sent everything - from plastic to paper and glass - to China, but now 80% is handled by local businesses, most of the rest is transferred to India.

"We move quickly and reach the domestic market," said Adam Faulkner, executive director of Northern Adelaide Waste Management Agency. "We realized by supporting local manufacturers, we were able to return to the price before the Chinese ban".

Photo: AFP.

Reduce consumption, reduce production

In mainland China, the amount of imported plastic waste has dropped from 600,000 tons per month in 2016 to 30,000 tons per month in 2018, according to the new report by Greenpeace and the non-governmental environmental organization Global Alliance for Incinerator. Alternatves.

Busy recycling centers are now abandoned when companies move to Southeast Asia.

During last year’s visit to the southern city of Xingtan, Chen Liwen, the founder of the non-governmental organization China Zero Waste Alliance, saw a time-consuming recycling industry.

Early Southeast Asian countries affected by China’s ban had moves to reduce the amount of imported plastic scrap. However, plastic waste is simply directed to countries without other restrictions such as Indonesia and Turkey, according to Greenpeace.

With an estimate that only about 90% of the plastic produced is recycled, campaigners argue that the only long-term solution to the plastic waste crisis is that the company has to export less and consumers are less.

Kate Lin, a Greenpeace campaigner, said: "The only solution for plastic pollution is to limit plastic production."