Opinion: Southeast Asia’s dominance in the global plastic credit market

The global plastic credit market is witnessing a significant shift in dynamics, with Southeast Asia emerging as a key player. This region, encompassing countries like India, Indonesia, and Thailand, is poised to lead the way in plastic credit projects and contribute to the sustainable management of plastic waste. In this article, we will explore the role of Southeast Asia in the upcoming global plastic market, focusing on the insights provided by Verra’s pipeline data.

Verra is a non-profit organisation that operates the Plastic Waste Reduction Program (Plastic Program) which is used for consistent accounting and crediting of a variety of plastic collection and recycling activities. Verra issues Waste Recycling or Collection Credits based on the volume of plastic waste recycled or collected above what would have happened in the absence of the Plastic Program project. Its registry stores data on all registered projects and tracks the generation, retirement, and cancellation of all Plastic Credits.

A glance at Figure 1 reveals the dominance of India in the plastic credit landscape. With a staggering 523K credits, accounting for 88.4% of the total, India takes the lead. Following closely behind is Kenya at 4.1% and Canada at 2.31%. Indonesia secures the fourth position with 1.66% of the plastic credits in the pipeline.

The substantial presence of Southeast Asian countries in Verra’s pipeline indicates their pivotal role in shaping the global plastic credit market. Southeast Asia’s Contribution The fact that 90% of the future supply of plastic credits will originate from Southeast Asia underscores the region’s potential to lead the global plastic credit market. Countries like India, in particular, have been at the forefront of plastic recycling and waste collection initiatives. Since the introduction of Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) in 2016, India has made remarkable strides in infrastructure development for plastic recycling and collection. As a result, India has established its dominance in the plastic credit market, as depicted in Figure 2.

Figure 2 sheds light on India’s active involvement in both plastic recycling and waste collection projects. The country’s concerted efforts in infrastructure development have led to a diverse range of initiatives aimed at mitigating plastic waste. These projects contribute to the overall plastic credit market and reinforce India’s position as a major player in the global plastic credit landscape.

Conclusion

Southeast Asia, with its significant presence in Verra’s plastic credit pipeline, is poised to play a leading role in the upcoming global plastic market. India’s remarkable progress in plastic recycling and waste collection projects exemplifies the region’s commitment to sustainable plastic waste management.

As Southeast Asian countries continue to spearhead initiatives and drive innovation in this field, they are set to shape the future of the global plastic credit market.

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Calculus Carbon is an environmental commodities market maker, channelling green financing from institutional investors towards sustainable projects around the world. Calculus Carbon is a Temasek portfolio company through the investment vehicle InfoEdge Ventures. We enter into exclusive contracts with project developers across the globe to build a pipeline of high quality decarbonisation projects, to enable large scale development via capital deployment by institutional investors.