Assessment of plastic waste management practices

The last few decades have seen a drastic increase of plastic production on a global scale. With this development comes an increase in the amount of plastic waste. In this context, the global awareness of the negative effects of plastic waste is peaking as well, inspiring campaigns and protests against plastic waste, especially focusing on the harm the waste does to marine wildlife.This book focuses on Germany, and provides an overview of the current plastic waste landscape and regulations in place. Thereafter, it assesses the effectiveness of plastic waste management methods regarding the reduction of said negative effects on society and third parties. This book also looks closely at the cost-benefit ratio that is achieved by pre-treatment measures and the methods applied.The current structure of plastic waste management aligns with the waste hierarchy implemented and current EU strategy. Nevertheless, there is still room for improvement especially regarding the international level of standardisation and trade in plastic waste.