Victory | March 31, 2022
Spain Curbs Ocean-Polluting Single-Use Plastics Through New Waste Law
Following campaigning by Oceana and allies, Spain adopted a new Waste Law that incorporates the European Union Single-Use Plastics Directive into national law, helping to reduce ocean-bound plastic pollution. Oceana advocated for the new law to go beyond the minimum requirements set by the EU, including newly adopted measures that will: establish a basis for future deposit-return schemes; reduce single-use plastics in public administration facilities; make plastic producers accountable for covering the costs of beach clean-ups; and enable municipalities to ban mass balloon releases and smoking on beaches. Although the Spanish government did not approve all of the additional prohibitions proposed by Oceana, the new law represents a key first step towards further action by Spain to reduce single-use plastics.