U.N. plans to drastically expand plastic waste management in India

Subject – Environment

Context – U.N. plans to drastically expand plastic waste management in India

Concept –

The United Nations Development Programme aims to almost triple its plastic waste management to 100 cities in India by 2024, to combat the damaging effects of plastic pollution.
The UNDP programme, which began in 2018, has so far collected 83,000 metric tonne of plastic waste. India generates about 3.4 million tonnes of plastic waste annually, according to official estimates.
The UNDP is working with federal think tank, NITI Aayog and have jointly developed a ‘handbook’ model for local municipalities as well as the private sector.
Plastic pollution is set to triple by 2040, the U.N. Environment Programme (UNEP) has predicted, adding 23-37 million metric tons of waste into the world’s oceans each year.
India, also the world’s third-biggest emitter of greenhouse gases after China and the United States, has set 2070 as a target to reach net-zero carbon emissions, much later than those set by others and twenty years after the U.N.’s global recommendation.

To know about Plastic waste management amendment rules 2021, please refer August 2021 DPN.