39 MNCs Come Together For Circular Economy Coalition

Relevance: GS2 - Bilateral, regional and global groupings and agreements involving India and/or affecting India’s interests GS3 - Environmental pollution and degradation, environmental impact assessment.

(Source: The Hindu, 07/28/2023)

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Why in the news?

• Recently the Resource Efficiency Circular Economy Industry Coalition was launched at the 4th G-20 Environment and Climate Sustainability Working Group (ECSWG) and Environment and Climate Ministers’ meeting in Chennai.
• The Coalition is a reflection of India’s message to adopt a circular economy that will help address environmental challenges through sustainability and regeneration.

What is the Resource Efficiency Circular Economy Industry Coalition?

• The Resource Efficiency Circular Economy Industry Coalition is a grouping of 39 MNCs from sectors such as steel, electronics, and FMCG including Maruti Suzuki, Coca-Cola, Unilever, Nestle, Aditya Birla Group, Tata Power, and Mahindra & Mahindra.
• They pledged to adopt the principles of resource efficiency and circular economy to address environmental challenges related to waste from plastics, microplastics, e-waste, chemical waste, etc.
• The RECEIC was conceptualized by India’s G20 Presidency and is industry-driven and self-sustaining with the government only playing a supporting role.
• Businesses are ideal for the on-ground implementation of resource efficiency and circular economy principles.
• The three pillars of the Coalition are
• Partnerships for impact
• Cooperation in technology
• Finance for scale
• The RECEIC will work towards achieving global commitments such as the Sustainable Development Goals, and Paris Climate Targets and other goals established by global organizations such as the G-20.
• Objective:
  • Facilitate and encourage company-company interactions
  • Develop advanced capabilities across sectors and value chains
  • Learn from the practices and diverse experiences of coalition members
  • Enable private sector initiatives to enhance resource efficiency and quicken the transition to circular economies.
• Impact of the RECEIC
  • Promote alliances among members
  • Encourage technological cooperation and knowledge sharing
  • Foster innovation
  • Enhance access to finance for environmental initiatives through the sharing of insights.

Conclusion

• These are important steps for reducing pollution caused due to littered plastic waste in the country.
• Accumulation of plastic waste is detrimental to the environment and when this waste finds its way into the sea, there can be major harm to aquatic ecosystems, too.

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FAQs

MCQs

Question: Consider the following statements:

1. The Extended producer responsibility was introduced in India for the first time under the Plastic Waste Management (Amendment) Rules, 2022.
2. It establishes a centralized online portal under the Ministry of Forests, Environment, and Climate Change.

Which of the above statements is/are correct?

(a) Only 1

(b) Only 2

(c) 1 and 2

(d) None