32 | Plastic packaging is very convenient for most consumers. It protects our food from contamination; ensures hygiene standards are met; and that “fresh” products can last longer. Whether we believe plastic packaging is a brilliant idea keeping societies safe and well fed, or that it does more harm than good, undoubtedly it has changed our daily habits, the ways we manage our food, our diets, and how we organise our time regarding food preparation. But where do all the plastics go after we use them (usually for just a very brief period)? Do we think about this material once it is disposed of? What is behind the out of sight, out of mind attitude? All these questions were crucial during our PPiPL pilot research project conducted in collaboration with Sunway University, Malaysia. As our recyclable waste is still exported rather than processed at home, it was reasonable to focus on waste management systems in one of the biggest importers of plastic waste in the world, Malaysia. WHAT ARE THE CHALLENGES? Focusing on Selangor state, for two months we collected data from households to reveal their everyday experiences and behaviours around food plastic packaging. Similarly, we included various waste collectors and landfill workers in our research sample to gain a better understanding on what happens to plastic waste and the biggest challenges for waste management in Malaysia. There are several challenges Malaysian waste management systems face, such as overconsumption of food packaging (e.g., retailers automatically placing each item in a separate LDPE bag); a lack of unified rules and knowledge of material separation at home, including zero instructions on food packaging; and excessive use of food delivery services that provide meals in singleuse plastics. Then there is the lack of unification of waste management systems, insufficient infrastructure, and limited financial sources from the perspective of waste-related organisations and collectors. What connects all these challenges is a lack of transparency. TOO MANY PLAYERS, TOO MANY “RULES” In the Malaysian waste management system, there are several actors operating either legally or illegally (mostly tolerated): official waste management companies, sanitary landfills and recycling centres, semilegal “recycling centres” where most of the employees are illegal migrant workers working in an unsafe and often unfair work environment, house-tohouse and landfill waste pickers, and illegal dumpsites that are spread around the country despite the government’s effort to eliminate them. All of these actors somehow contribute – either positively or negatively – to overwhelming waste problems in Malaysia. Moreover, Selangor is a non-Act state, which means the local government has not signed Act 672 on solid waste and public cleansing. This also indicates that separation at source is not compulsory as it is in Act-states, which is one of the issues mentioned by managers of interviewed recycling centres as citizens are not motivated to participate in recycling. As the waste collection and management systems are not unified, different waste collection schemes are practised in different areas. Whereas in some places recyclable materials are collected by a licenced company; in others, citizens can bring their recyclables into a recycling point (in some, they are paid for the material, in others they are just allowed to get rid of the waste for free). In other areas, house-to-house waste pickers operate, however not every household allows them to collect their waste. Furthermore, a lack of uniformity and clear recycling scheme creates confusion for households. Some waste collectors focus on specific materials and the rest is discarded into general
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