Portsmouth University researchers will investigate how Vietnam developed its plastic waste policies, aiming to provide crucial insights for global plastic pollution responses.
The University of Portsmouth is leading groundbreaking research into Vietnam’s approach to plastic waste management, examining how the country has crafted its environmental policies to tackle the growing crisis of plastic pollution.
The study, titled “Rethinking Responsibility: Understanding the Role of Evidence in Vietnam’s EPR Policy,” has secured funding from the British Academy and will focus on how evidence, equity and inclusion influenced Vietnam’s plastic waste legislation.
Dr Antaya March, Director of the University of Portsmouth‘s Global Plastics Policy Centre, is spearheading the research alongside partners from Vietnam Maritime University and the Norwegian Institute for Water Research (NIVA).
The research will specifically examine Vietnam’s implementation of Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) – a policy framework that makes manufacturers accountable for the plastics they introduce to the market.
“Extended Producer Responsibility is now being adopted by many governments in response to plastic pollution,” explained Dr March. “But the truth is, we still know very little about how these policies are being shaped or whose voices are being heard in the process.”
Vietnam established its EPR policy for plastic packaging in 2022, mandating that producers and importers fund or directly oversee the collection, recycling and disposal of plastic materials. The policy incorporates incentives for environmentally friendly design and preferential loans for sustainable production methods.
However, researchers have raised concerns about the inclusivity and evidence-based nature of the policymaking process – an issue that extends across nearly all countries developing similar legislation.
Dr March emphasised that the study aims to answer fundamental questions about policy development: “This is about more than just recycling rates. We want to know why was EPR chosen over other options? What kind of evidence – scientific, indigenous, or otherwise – guided those decisions? And were marginalised groups, like informal waste workers or women who are significant actors in local waste management, meaningfully included in the policymaking process?”
The urgency of this research is underscored by Vietnam’s environmental challenges. According to World Bank data, approximately 300,000 tonnes of plastic waste flow into Vietnam’s waterways and seas annually. The region has emerged as a global hotspot for plastic pollution, partly due to insufficient waste infrastructure and increasing imports from wealthy nations.
The study comes at a crucial juncture as negotiations for a Global Plastics Treaty continue. Critics of current EPR approaches argue they frequently overlook essential challenges in low and middle-income countries, including the exclusion of low-value plastics, insufficient support for reuse systems, and potential risks to informal waste workers who depend on plastic collection for their income.
Vietnam’s EPR policy establishes mandatory recycling targets but lacks reuse requirements or formal protections for the informal sector. The Portsmouth-led project will examine these policy gaps through interviews, document analysis, and stakeholder mapping, with the objective of informing more inclusive and effective policies throughout Southeast Asia and beyond.
“This will be the first in-depth, retrospective analysis of how a plastics EPR policy was actually developed,” Dr March noted. “And it comes at a critical time. If the Global Plastics Treaty is finalised in 2025, many countries may need to adopt or reform EPR schemes. Our work can help ensure those policies are grounded in evidence and designed for equity.”
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The research team will collaborate closely with regional organisations to ensure their findings directly contribute to ongoing policymaking efforts across the region.
Dr March concluded: “We hope this project not only supports better decisions in Vietnam, but helps shape more just and effective global responses to the plastic crisis.”
