# Bridging the Gap in United Nations Environment Programme’s Report: The Potential of Nudges to Reduce Plastic Pollution and Health Risks

## TL;DR

This paper explores how nudges can help reduce plastic pollution by improving recycling practices and addressing health risks.

## Contribution

The study introduces the application of health behavior nudges to improve PET recycling rates and reduce plastic pollution.

## Key findings

- Only 59.3% of PET bottles were properly separated by administrative staff in a Japanese government office.
- Nudges from health behavior could be leveraged to improve environmental recycling behaviors.

## Abstract

Plastic pollution is increasingly becoming a threatening problem worldwide, with highlighted health risks associated with plastic waste incineration. Among the immediate measures to address this problem, proper recycling of polyethylene terephthalate (PET) bottles is a pertinent strategy. Considering the urgent need for administrative-led reforms, we assessed the separation rates of PET bottle caps and labels by 125 administrative staff in a government office of a prefectural in Japan during a four-day period; only 59.3% (48/81) of the pet bottles had both caps and labels removed and properly separated to each trash can.

One potential solution for the low separation rate is the use of nudges, which are effective methods for promoting behaviors such as healthy actions. Since both health and environmentally conscious behaviors involve choices across different time points, leveraging insights from nudges developed in the field of health behavior to environmental behaviors is considered crucial, even from a health promotion perspective.