30% Reduction in Virgin Plastics by 2030... Targeting a 7 Million Ton Decrease in Raw Materials

Reducing Courier Packaging and Detailing 'Eco-Design'

The government has set a goal to fundamentally reduce the input of petroleum-based virgin plastic (new material, i.e., plastic produced for the first time from petroleum or naphtha) by more than 30% compared to projected waste plastic generation by 2030. This initiative is aimed at responding to supply instability of oil and naphtha caused by the recent Middle East conflict, as well as establishing a sustainable plastic-free circular economy ecosystem to secure industrial competitiveness.

On April 28, the Ministry of Climate, Energy and Environment presented the 'Plan for Transition to a Plastic-Free Circular Economy' at a Cabinet meeting. This policy is one of the core state tasks of the Lee Jaemyung administration, focusing on reducing unnecessary plastic at the production stage and reintegrating inevitably generated waste into the production cycle as recycled material.

On the 4th, a day before Environment Day, plastic recycling waste is piled up at the Suwon City Resource Circulation Center in Gyeonggi Province. Photo by Yonhap News

To achieve source reduction of plastics, the government will encourage consideration of recyclability from the product design and production stages. It plans to promote the use of alternatives for products with frequent plastic use, such as cosmetic containers and plastic bags, and will strictly manage excessive packaging by limiting the space ratio (to 50% or less) and the number of packaging layers (one time) for courier packaging.

In addition, the government will develop a 'Korean-style eco-design system' to assess the recyclability and repairability of products, and will strengthen economic incentives by providing differentiated reductions in waste charges depending on the proportion of recycled materials used.

To broaden the foundation of the recycling industry, the target for the use of recycled materials will be raised. The mandatory recycled material content in PET bottles, currently at 10%, will be significantly increased to 30% by 2030, and the range of products subject to these requirements will be gradually expanded to include food and cosmetic containers and various types of plastic films.

In particular, management will be tightened for items that have previously been blind spots in recycling, such as clothing and disposable cups. Police and military uniforms will be collected to extract recycled polyester, and disposable cups will be included in the Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) system for systematic collection. To support these efforts, the government will launch the 'K-Circular Economy Ribbon Project' with an investment of approximately 254 billion won from 2027 to 2033 to secure technologies for producing high-quality recycled materials.

To establish a plastic-free culture across society, the transition to reusable containers in multi-use facilities will be accelerated. This will start with public funeral homes and expand to private ones, as well as to sports stadiums and cafeterias. In order to guarantee consumers' 'right to repair,' a home appliance repair information system will be established and the number of repair hubs will be expanded as part of a collaborative framework.

Kim Seonghwan, Minister of Climate, emphasized, "The current Middle East conflict is both a crisis and an opportunity to improve the linear structure of our economy," and added, "By swiftly pursuing source reduction and circular utilization, we will realize a sustainable economy that is resilient to external shocks."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.