In the quiet agricultural town of Jenjarom, Malaysia, the tranquility of the past has been replaced by the harsh reality of the present. The town, once known for its serene landscapes, is now a dumping ground for plastic waste from the United States and other affluent nations. This transformation has not only disrupted the lives of the locals but also raised serious health concerns.
Pua Lay Peng, a 52-year-old resident of Jenjarom, is living on the front lines of this global plastic pollution crisis. "Your waste is harmful and threatens the health of my family, my children, and also destroys the future of my people, my generation," she told ABC News. Her plea is a stark reminder of the environmental injustice faced by many communities in Southeast Asia.
A groundbreaking investigation by ABC News has revealed that plastic bags from Walmart recycling bins in the U.S. have been traced to facilities in Southeast Asia. The investigation, which began over 18 months ago, involved the use of 46 digital tracking devices attached to plastic bags and dropped off at Walmart and Target recycling bins across 10 states.
The results were startling. Three of the 19 tracking devices ended up in Southeast Asia, two in Malaysia and one in Indonesia. "No responsible waste company in the United States, no responsible local government should be exporting plastic waste to other countries," said Judith Enck, a former Environmental Protection Agency administrator and current president of the anti-plastic pollution project Beyond Plastics. "It's causing real damage, particularly in Indonesia and Malaysia," she added.
The majority of the trackers never pinged from a plastic bag recycling facility, with many ending up in landfills or incinerators. Only four trackers last pinged from a U.S. facility that claimed to be involved in plastic bag recycling. However, further research revealed that these facilities likely either discarded the plastic bags in the U.S. or exported them abroad.
The practice of exporting plastic waste, particularly to less affluent nations, is a contentious issue. Often labeled as "waste colonialism," the United Nations has described it as "highly prone to corruption." In 2019, the Basel Convention's Amendments on Plastic Waste set strict regulations for international plastic waste shipments. However, the U.S., one of the world's largest plastic producers, has refused to join the agreement and continues to export plastic waste with little oversight.
Since 2020, over 600,000 metric tons of plastic waste has been shipped from U.S. ports to countries around the world under the guise of "recycling," according to an ABC News analysis of data provided by S&P Global Market Intelligence.
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