Tackling Plastic Pollution through a holistic approach: between piecemeal regulatory measures, active role of Courts and responsibility of the society

Abstract

Plastic is basically everywhere and this is not only a generational question, but above all it is a question of human survival within the biosphere. It is a "Tragedy of Commons" that emblematically reveals the human tendency to exploit a common resource until pollution or, in any case, until depletion.

Although during the second half of the last century a series of political and economic corrective theories were drawn up, their implementation has only led to a more serious approach to plastic pollution but not to a comprehensive solution.

In this framework, the crux of this essay is to imagine the global problem under a double lens based on top-down and bottom-up approaches. According to the former, there is a need for a stratified and polycentric governance in which not only political decision-makers are taken over, but also judicial bodies. According to the latter, there is a need for an active involvement of the society through rules of behavioural economy based on nudging.

Overall, this holistic approach is able to outline an effective strategy to tackle plastic pollution, by overcoming the piecemeal rules currently in force in this sector - that is achieved through multi-level and effective regulatory approaches and the recognition of the growing role of the Courts in the development of the regulatory measures - and by mindly pushing individual consciences through practices capable of bringing social-based behavioural changes to people.