Post by Alliance to End Plastic Waste

Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) is often associated with funding waste management systems. But in practice, well-designed EPR systems can also help strengthen broader outcomes across the plastics value chain. Over time, they can improve transparency and accountability across material flows, support stronger collection and recycling systems, encourage more recyclable packaging design, and support more inclusive waste management systems that recognise the role of informal workers. What ultimately determines whether these benefits materialise is how EPR systems are designed and implemented in practice. This includes how responsibilities are defined, how funding is deployed, and how systems are adapted to local realities over time. The lack of investment in waste management systems remains a major barrier to advancing a circular economy for plastics, particularly where legal frameworks, policies, and enforcement mechanisms remain underdeveloped. EPR is a practical policy approach to help accelerate that transition. These outcomes are often cited as the promise of EPR, but realising them depends on the strength of the systems behind them. We examine the conditions needed for EPR systems to deliver effectively in practice: https://bit.ly/4vCOo8r #EndPlasticWaste #AdvocacyToAction #ExtendedProducerResponsibility #WasteManagement #CircularEconomy