Seven building blocks for a successful National Action Plan to address plastic pollution
A new report from the University's Global Plastics Policy Centre and Common Seas unpacks the essential elements of successful National Plans to tackle plastic pollution
National Action Plans (NAPs) have proved a contentious issue in negotiations for a Global Plastics Treaty. A new report from the Global Plastics Policy Centre at the University of Portsmouth and Common Seas unpacks the essential elements of successful National Plans to inform the fourth round of negotiations in Ottawa next week.
The policy brief report, Delivering an effective Global Plastics Treaty through coordinated national action, identifies seven essential components for the success of National Plans:
- Be evidence-based: Policies included as part of a NAP should be grounded in rigorous research and data analysis that is specific to the country in question.
- Build on existing policies, initiatives and projects: a NAP does not need to start from zero, and should incorporate learnings from previous projects.
- Provide an assessment of economic and social impacts of action strategies.
- Adopt focused and actionable approaches: NAPs should avoid being a long wish list of potential actions that can dilute targeted action and over stretch resources.
- Establish a clear process for monitoring and evaluation: to track progress and adapt strategies accordingly.
- Prioritise inclusion and collaboration with stakeholders.
- Identify available funding: in financially constrained environments, the identification and promotion of potential funding sources within NAPs is pivotal in bolstering policy support.
The report is based on evidence from peer-reviewed scientific articles, reports from previous INCs, expert interviews, and stakeholder and member state submissions to the INC Secretariat. It also builds on the in-country, practical experience that the organisations have in helping to design policies and national plans to address plastic pollution. It aims to identify the stumbling blocks that have limited the effectiveness of past NAP approaches in other international environmental treaties and suggest ways to ensure these approaches can be successful if used to implement the Global Plastics Treaty.
Antaya March, Lead Researcher at the Global Plastics Policy Centre at the University of Portsmouth said: “Our research shows there is a high chance that a NAP or similar approach will be selected as an implementation measure for the Global Plastics Treaty with around 85 per cent of member states supporting National Action Plans. However, the current NAP approach would need to be revised to ensure an effective Global Plastics Treaty.”
"Our research shows there is a high chance that a NAP or similar approach will be selected as an implementation measure for the Global Plastics Treaty with around 85 per cent of member states supporting National Action Plans. However, the current NAP approach would need to be revised to ensure an effective Global Plastics Treaty."
– Antaya March, Research Lead, Global Plastics Policy Centre
National Action Plans are a hotly debated subject. Their success relies on each country voluntarily submitting plans for action, yet there are no measures in place to ensure they are implemented. It is an approach used in the Paris Climate Agreement.
In a previous policy draft, The Global Plastics Policy team identified several limitations of NAPs:
- Uncoordinated efforts, and inconsistent definitions and metrics
- Mandates requiring the production of national action plans but which do not specify their content
- Unmonitored implementation and a lack of accountability resulting in uncertain effectiveness
- Lack of transparency, funding, and legislative support for national action plan objectives
Carla Worth, Policy lead at Common Seas, said: “National Plans are likely going to be one of the key measures used to implement the Global Plastics Treaty at the national level. As such, getting them right is crucial. We must learn from previous mistakes because we cannot afford any more."
Download the report from the Common Seas website.
