Austrian polyolefins and chemicals supplier Borealis AG has provided the lion's share of funding for Project STOP Ocean Plastics (STOP), the first round of which will be carried out in Indonesia.
Project STOP is a joint initiative with SYSTEMIQ and Sustainable Waste Indonesia, and works with city governments to eliminate leakage of plastics into the ocean, increase plastics recycling and support the wider system changes required for a plastics circular economy.
Phase one of Project STOP, which concluded in October last year, included successful feasibility and baseline studies and other preparatory work to launch the initiative in a South East Asian city.
As part of the second phase, the city of Muncar, a major fishing port in East Java, has been chosen for the first city-partnership project.
“Indonesia's economic growth and plastics consumption has outpaced its ability to manage plastic waste,” said the Vienna-based company in a 26 April statement.
This, it said, has made Indonesia the world's second largest source of marine plastic debris, after China.
“Addressing marine litter is a critical challenge for our industry and a key focus of Borealis' social engagement strategy,” said Mark Garrett, Borealis CEO.
“There is a great need to accelerate circular waste management solutions in Asia and we are hugely excited to design and deliver this new city partnership model, together with Borealis and our government partners in Indonesia," explained Martin Stuchtey, founder and managing partner of SYSTEMIQ.