Publications : Viet Nam

 A new report from WWF, Ellen MacArthur Foundation and Boston Consulting Group finds that a new international treaty on plastic pollution would benefit both the environment and businesses, and accelerate global efforts to tackle plastic pollution.

A new INTERPOL strategic report on global plastic waste management has found an alarming increase in illegal plastic pollution trade across the world since 2018.

The report, entitled INTERPOL’s strategical analysis on emerging criminal trends in the global plastic waste market since January 2018, indicates that there has been a considerable increase over the past two years in illegal waste shipments, primarily rerouted to South-East Asia via multiple transit countries to camouflage the origin of the waste shipment.

The study considers single-use plastic bottles and alternatives that could potentially replace them from a functional and transportation point of view.

This report identifies how consumers and food and beverage businesses perceive plastic waste issues in five South-East Asian countries estimated to be major contributors of marine plastic litter: Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Thailand and Viet Nam.

Produced in line with the 76th Session of the Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific, the theme study Changing Sails: Accelerating Regional Actions for Sustainable Oceans in Asia and the Pacific explores the key areas around which regional platforms can rally interdisciplinary and cross-sectoral solutions for the ocean. It highlights the lack of data and statistics on the ocean, the growing demand for moving towards inclusive and green maritime shipping, deteriorating fish stocks and gaps in fisheries management and the mounting pressure of marine plastic pollution.

In the past year, concerted efforts to scale up the implementation of the 2018-2022 Sustainable Development Strategy for the Seas of East Asia (SDS-SEA) meant PEMSEA and its partner countries surpassed its integrated coastal management (ICM) targets ahead of schedule. Targeting to achieve at least 25% coverage of the region’s coastline by 2021, ICM coverage of the region’s coastline is now estimated at 37.9% as of December 2019.

This SEA circular country briefing for Viet Nam covers the socio-economic profile of Viet Nam, and the coastal and marine ecosystem and economy. It details the plastics and packaging production and usage status and covers aspects of solid waste management - and the impact of both of these factors on marine litter status. Actions taken on marine plastics is detailed, covering government actions and the private sector. Global, regional and national policy frameworks related to Viet Nam are detailed.

The Ocean Finance Handbook takes stock of the current ocean-scape of finance and provides an introduction to those seeking to increase their understanding of finance and investment in the sustainable blue economy. The Ocean Finance Handbook provides a concise summary of the various means by which finance flows to the ocean can be enhanced, to support the development of the sustainable blue economy.

This publication from the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) SOM Steering Committee on Economic and Technical Cooperation (SCE), Ocean and Fisheries Working Group (OFWG) proposes national waste governance plans to address marine debris “hot spots”, provide technical litter traps on rivers to improve marine debris prevention and remediation, and promote private sector and public involvement in models that extend both producer and consumer responsibility. The report has four case studies of best practice and ends by making recommendations for moving forward, illustrating preventative marine debris measures that may benefit marginalized groups in the APEC region.

SEA of Solutions 2019 was the first annual partnership week convened by the SEA circular initiative. SEA of Solutions 2019 brought together governments, business leaders, scientists, UN agencies and community groups, to dialogue on solutions for marine plastic pollution.
Over 500 registered participants from more than 40 countries, 115 speakers in 20 sessions and 25 exhibition booths, all highlighted solutions to prevent marine plastic pollution. The first annual SEA of Solutions event was successful in generating dialogue and promoting opportunities for future collaboration and partnerships. More than 300 organizations, including well over 100 companies, NGOs, governmental bodies, academic, and youth groups sent representatives from across the region to this event, fostering partnerships in the region to combat the transboundary problem of plastic pollution – under the uniting mantra of ‘Together, less plastic wasted’.

The scope of this report from the UN Centre for Regional Development (UNCRD) includes a description and evaluation of the state of the whole of value chain related to plastic in Asia and the Pacific region. It covers the material cycle of plastic, including production, consumption, waste generation, segregation, treatment and disposal. The key pressures due to plastic wastes are discussed. The report presents ways forward on how Asia and the Pacific countries should address the plastics economy as a way to advance circular economy principles, to work towards achieving clean land, clean water and clean air in support of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development / SDGs and the Habitat III New Urban Agenda.

This working paper from UN Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) considers the opportunities for designing out waste to retain plastics within the economy and regaining the value embodied in plastics that leaked out of the economy as waste. It reviews continuing efforts for recovering plastics already in oceans, in particular in services, on beaches, ports and coastal waters. It provides strategies to consider, in promoting a circular plastics economy and ending the global marine plastic litter challenge

These guidelines from the Joint Group of Experts on the Scientific  Aspects of Marine Environmental Protection (GESAMP) provides recommendations, advice and practical guidance, for the establishment of programmes to monitor and assess the distribution and abundance of plastic litter, also referred to as plastic debris, in the ocean. The intention is to promote a more harmonized approach to the design of sampling programmes, to inform the establishment of national and regional field monitoring programmes.

This mapping report from the UN Environment Programme provides a comprehensive global mapping of plastic losses to the environment throughout the plastic value chain using 2015 as the reference year. This mapping covers plastics production and processing, use of plastics or plastic containing products, and disposal of the products. It differentiates 23 types of plastics and 13 plastic applications, including division between macro- and micro plastics (including microbeads and microfibers).

These case studies from from the UN Environment Programme complement the “Regional Seas Follow Up and Review of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) – Conceptual Guidelines”, which provides good examples and practical guidance to enhance the role and contribution of regional seas to the SDG follow-up and review process, in line with UN General Assembly and UNEA resolutions and Global Meetings for the Regional Seas Conventions and Action Plans. These case studies enable more in-depth analysis for a number of regional seas, with specific suggestions and actions for the future strengthened reporting on the SDGs.

This stocktaking report from the UN Environment Programme takes stock of the extent of knowledge on plastics in the marine environment. It provides a high level summary of the available literature on the key sources and locations of these plastics, along with an analysis of the problem products and polymers making up marine plastics and microplastics. It also looks at what is currently being done to address the problem of marine plastics and summarises existing policy responses in order to lay the groundwork for future action.

This publication from the UN Environment Programme shares information on prediction models that have been developed in NOWPAP member states, in order to analyze the behavior of floating marine litter, and the parameterization of floating marine litter characteristics. The main objective of this report is to establish a plan for future development of a regional prediction model, which could be applied to predict the behaviors of floating marine litter, in order to eventually be able to identify the trajectory, support the reduction of, and develop prevention measures against floating marine litter in the region.

This report from UN Environment Programme for World Environment Day 2018 covers the scale of the plastics challenge. It covers the role of governments, private sector and communities in responding to the challenge. It demonstrates how all elements of society have a role to play in exploring opportunities for reducing conventional plastic use and replacing it with alternative materials or biomass-based biopolymers. There is a need for innovation and entrepreneurship. Governments and individuals are encouraged to raise awareness about the impact plastics have on society and the environment, and to seek to educate people about the potential of alternative materials

This brief from the UN Environment Programme provides policy and management recommendations for addressing and reducing the impacts of plastics on shallow water coral reefs, based on current scientific knowledge. The brief contributes to achieving the related global, national and regional goals and targets, including the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The brief promotes integrated planning and management, awareness-raising, and other efforts to improve and standardize the monitoring of plastics on reefs. It is primarily aimed at national and state policy makers.