In our previous article, we provided a wide overview of the size and importance of international plastic waste (PW) trade. Subsequently, in this piece, we will shed light on why plastic waste trade is such a profitable sector and which are the incentives to perform this business outside of legality.
On Friday 8th of August 2025 Dutch news outlets echoed about a sentencing on plastic waste smuggling from the Netherlands to various non-EU countries. NL Times, AD, local news outlets, and the Dutch Inspection (ILT) reported the criminal sentencing of 4 people and 3 companies for illicit plastic waste trade, with one of them being also charged with money laundering.
Despite its small size, the Netherlands is one of the world's largest exporters of plastic waste per capita. Thanks to the port of Rotterdam and a strong trading position, the Netherlands acts as an important transit country - even for shipments with shadowy origins and destinations. A lack of enforcement makes the system vulnerable to illegal exports, with waste often ending up in countries with weak environmental regulations. This article shows how the Netherlands unintentionally contributes to global environmental pollution and why stricter rules and more responsibility are crucial.
Since China banned plastic waste imports from other countries in 2018, there has been an "alarming increase" in illegal waste shipments that, camouflaged through multiple transit countries, end up heading to Southeast Asia anyway. So writes Interpol in the...
In September 2010, the VROM Inspectorate issued a report on the enforcement of EVOA rules when exporting plastic waste from the Netherlands in 2009. The report shows, that in over 20% of the 350 cross-border shipments of plastic waste examined, environmental...