Baseline Information:
China stands as the world's largest producer and consumer of plastics. The production of plastics, being a petrochemical product, consumes a significant amount of high-quality crude oil. Incineration of plastics results in substantial emissions of carbon dioxide and harmful gases. However, due to their low recycling value, around 70% of plastic waste in China is incinerated or landfilled as part of municipal solid waste. Recycling, in contrast to incineration and landfilling, offers a genuine solution to achieve closed-loop recycling and efficient utilization of plastic resources. It significantly reduces the carbon footprint of the plastic industry, thus playing a pivotal role in achieving carbon peak and neutrality. Therefore, enhancing the collection and circular utilization of waste flexible plastic packaging is crucial to elevate the value chain of plastic waste recycling and promote low-carbon sustainable development across the industry.
Flexible plastic packaging, characterized by its lightweight, durability, and transport convenience, is economically efficient and resource-saving. Consequently, it is widely used across various scenarios. Simultaneously, with the improvement in living standards, there's a substantial increase in packaging consumption, resulting in heightened pressure on plastic packaging waste management. The disposability and non-degradability of single-use flexible plastics, if not efficiently managed through recycling and utilization, could lead to a significant environmental and social impact. This issue makes it crucial to effectively address the recycling and utilization of a vast majority of flexible plastic packaging, which often ends up in landfills or incinerators, exacerbating environmental and societal concerns.

Main Problems:
Recycling and utilizing flexible plastic packaging have long posed challenges within the plastic circular economy. China, as a major global plastic producer and consumer, generates over 60 million tons of plastic waste annually. Only around 30% of this waste is physically recycled due to its low recycling value. The remaining 70% is incinerated (27.6 million tons) or landfilled (15.4 million tons), causing considerable resource and carbon loss.
Various challenges hinder flexible plastic recycling. Public understanding of recyclable items like beverage bottles is high, but confusion about soft plastics like packaging bags leads to sorting challenges. Composite materials often used in soft plastics complicate recycling, particularly for multi-layer structures. Moreover, end-market viability for recycled products is often limited. Lightweight soft plastics are often overlooked in recycling systems, and contamination from usage further diminishes recycling rates.

Activities:

1. Project Workshops: Organize workshops with government representatives, researchers, and experts to discuss the project's feasibility, implementation, challenges, and solutions, ensuring practicality, scalability, and demonstration significance.
2. Mass Media & Community Outreach: Utilize popular media platforms (WeChat, Weibo, etc.) to raise awareness about proper soft plastic waste disposal. Engage volunteers in community activities, create informative videos, distribute flyers, and establish collection points, fostering resident participation.
3. Household-Based Recycling Plan: Collaborate with influential recycling enterprises to create instructional courses guiding households on correct soft plastic waste segregation.
4. Recycling Technology Seminars & Pilot Production: Gather technical experts and industry representatives to discuss converting waste soft plastics into reusable products. Explore various recycling approaches, such as using innovative technologies for repurposing.
5. Guidelines for Designing Recyclable Soft Packaging: Collaborate with industry experts to establish guidelines that inform manufacturers about designing soft packaging for better recyclability.
6. Project Evaluation: Engage government officials and experts to assess project results, creating a policy recommendation report for national departments.
7. Bilingual Project Brochures: Produce brochures in both Chinese and English, summarizing the project's achievements, promoting environmental consciousness, and sharing recycling experiences.
Anticipated Outcomes:

1. Assessment of the Soft Plastic Recycling Industry: Collaborate with associations, experts, and organizations to analyze the soft plastic recycling industry's status, generate reports, and propose constructive solutions.
2. Model Exploration: Through pilot activities, explore and document effective household soft plastic waste collection methods for replication and integration into waste management solutions.
3. Public Awareness & Habit Formation: Continued publicity efforts will encourage proper soft plastic waste disposal habits among residents and foster gradual adoption.
4. Summarized Recycling Experience & Design Guidelines: Compile successful recycling strategies and produce design guidelines for recyclable soft packaging, enhancing recyclability and aiding manufacturers.
5. Policy Recommendations: Engage governmental discussions to form a policy recommendation report. Garner national attention, prompting the implementation and enhancement of recycling-oriented policies.