After China stopped buying almost all plastic waste in January 2018, Malaysia became a popular spot for waste-trafficking. According to government and United Nations statistics, the nation imported over 850,000 metric tons of plastic waste that year. Abandoning imported plastic waste was also the cheaper option all around. “As for Selangor, we have reiterated many times that we do not support the policy which allows the import of plastic waste. Others, including the Malaysian government, say current legislation is enough as they cannot stop importing plastic waste as the local recycling industry — which prefers industrial plastic waste and not municipal plastic waste — needs more than what the domestic market can provide.

Source: The Edge Markets December 18, 2021 01:38 UTC