The development and entry into force of legislation on plastics is still in its infancy in the EU, but it is developing rapidly, and legislation is being adopted in more and more areas. The rapid development of the process over the last decade is demonstrated, for example, by the fact that among the provisions supporting WFD, only the Marine Strategy Framework Directive 2008/56/EC [162] mentions marine pollution, which directly affects the problem area of microplastics, and the need to reduce it. The fact that efforts and demands to reduce plastic waste are appearing in more and more EU declarations and directives indicates that the issue of plastic is being taken more seriously. However, it can also be noted that many countries outside Europe (e.g. China, India) have already introduced restrictions on the use of plastic products, reducing the production of plastic waste. However, the mentioned countries also have more to do in terms of water base protection. A total ban on the use of plastic products has been introduced in some member states of the USA (e.g. Hawaii), and even among the member states of the European Union – Italy has only allowed bags made of degradable plastic since 2011. The European Commission’s Green Paper (European Strategy on Plastic Waste in the Environment), published in 2013, discusses the growing problem of plastic waste, waste management objectives, and actions at the international level [163]. The measures proposed following the Green Paper were part of a broader review of waste-related legislation. The objective of this review was the ex-post evaluation of five directives dealing with current waste recycling, landfill targets and different waste streams.

 

Since the ever-growing amount and long-life cycle of plastic waste does not fit into the theory of circular economy, the material cycle is not realized in their case, the ever-growing amount of plastic waste must be managed and its release into the environment (especially the oceans) must be prevented. For the life cycle of plastics to be circular, the requirements of recycling, repair and reprocessing must be taken into account at the design stage. The significant negative environmental, health and economic impacts of some plastic products necessitate the creation of a dedicated regulatory framework to effectively reduce these significant negative impacts.

The environmental significance of plastic waste was first regulated by law in 2015. EU Directive 2015/720 requires member states to reduce the use of thin-walled (50 microns) single-use plastic bags [166]. Since it is a directive and not a regulation, the regulation appeared/appears late in the member states’ own legal systems. In Hungary, the law [167] was passed in summer 2020, according to which the following products were banned from January 1, 2021:

 

As a first summary of the above processes, in 2018 the European Commission designed the first Pan-European Strategy for Plastics [COM (2018)28 final] [168]. It mentions the advantages of using plastics, such as the lightweight and innovative materials used in automotive construction that contribute to the reduction of fuel consumption and carbon dioxide emissions. Thanks to insulating materials with excellent properties, we can reduce our energy costs. Plastics used in packaging help to guarantee food safety and reduce food waste, even though plastic waste is the largest source of waste in this area. The combination of 3D printing and biocompatible plastics can lead to life-saving medical innovations. All of this highlights the role of plastics in our lives, but at the same time it is a fact that they do not participate in the material cycle due to their long lifespan, so it is necessary to reconsider the production, use and treatment of plastics as waste. Directive 2019/904 on reducing the environmental impact of certain plastic products aims to promote a circular approach that gives preference to sustainable and non-toxic reusable products and reuse systems over single-use products, mainly with the aim of reducing the amount of waste [169]. All these guidelines achieve their goal when the attitude they convey is integrated into people’s minds and behavior. For the first time in the legislation of the European Union, we read in the WFD that all member states must attach importance to publicizing the problems formulated; contact with people, communication and information are important. The effort to minimize plastic waste has entered the public consciousness much faster and easier. To date, many such initiatives have become known (e.g. #NOWASTE movement, use of #MOSIPELUS, Greenpeace plastic footprint petition, etc.). These are necessary; if it is possible to reduce the amount of plastic waste in households, it should be done, but as the statistics show, such steps must be taken mainly in the area of production to achieve a significant result.