The Hazardous Waste (Control of Export, Import and Transit)
(Amendment) Bill ("Amendment
Bill")1 was read in Parliament for the
first time on 6 January 2020. Its Explanatory Notes states that it
seeks, amongst other things, to "amend the Hazardous Waste
(Control of Export, Import and Transit) Act
("Act")2 to include plastic
waste within the scope of the Act in compliance with
Singapore's obligations under the Basel Convention". This
update explores the implications of the amendment.
Introduction
Pollution from plastic waste and micro-plastics have become a
planetary environmental problem. It is a matter of major concern,
not only because of its scale, but also because of its durability
– hundreds of years – and in some cases, toxicity. The
ocean now contains an estimated 100 million tonnes of plastic, with
80 to 90% of it coming from land-based sources. If unaddressed, by
2050, there could be more plastic than fish in the oceans by
weight. Plastic has also become
