Malaysia needs a national plastics law, says Nik Nazmi

New Straits Times

a day ago

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia should consider introducing a national plastics law to prepare for the Global Plastics Treaty, said Setiawangsa Member of Parliament Nik Nazmi Nik Ahmad.
He said existing policies remained limited and that existing laws suffer from extremely low enforcement.
"Our existing policies are still limited. We should consider a national plastics law to be ready for the global treaty.
"We must also fully utilise existing laws such as the Solid Waste Management and Public Cleansing Act 2007, which provides for waste separation at source, but enforcement is extremely low," he said during the 13th Malaysia Plan debate in the Dewan Rakyat today.
Nik Nazmi, who is the former natural resources and environmental sustainability minister, said plastics must be managed in a sustainable manner with the national policy focusing on two pillars — moving towards zero single-use plastic and sustainable plastic management.
"This year, the meeting of environment ministers and state executive councillors nationwide agreed to ban single-use plastic bags at permanent premises, heritage sites, forest reserves and marine parks starting Jan 1, 2026.
"This is historic, but we hope state governments will play their part as the federal government currently has no authority to enforce this law at the state level," he said.
The Global Plastics Treaty is a proposed international agreement being developed by the United Nations to address the global plastic pollution crisis.
The treaty aims to tackle plastic pollution across its entire lifecycle, from production and design to waste management and disposal.
It seeks to establish a legally binding framework for countries to reduce plastic pollution and transition towards a circular economy for plastics.
Nik Nazmi said neighbouring countries such as Thailand, the Philippines and Indonesia have already submitted input to the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee's ongoing talks on the treaty, but Malaysia had yet to do so.
"We have seen previously that European and African nations have taken very idealistic positions, which may be challenging for countries like Malaysia when considering a just transition, as we are still developing and have large oil and gas as well as plastics industries.
"But we must realise that 'business as usual' is no longer an option. Plastics and their increased use will have impacts not only on the environment but also on human health.
"We have also seen that some countries have asked Malaysia to improve its role in finding common ground and raising our ambitions to help make this treaty a reality," he said.