The workshop examined the phenomenon from multiple regulatory angles, addressing definitions and categories (including the distinction and scope of ‘microplastics’), circular economy approaches, the deployment of technologies for waste prevention, traceability and treatment, and the corporate responsibility framework associated with plastics production and management.

Throughout the workshop, different regulatory models and their practical implications were discussed: cleaner production standards, labelling and consumer information rules, incentives and barriers to innovation, enforcement and compliance mechanisms, as well as the challenges of intersectoral and interinstitutional coordination. The contributions of the participants enriched the debate by incorporating diverse realities from the region, including disparate regulatory capacities, gaps in recycling and waste management infrastructure, and tensions between environmental objectives, competition and productive development.

These exchanges made it possible to identify preliminary issues relevant to the project, such as the need to strengthen Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) schemes as a key tool for correcting systemic failures in collection, recycling, and final disposal; the desirability of moving towards more harmonised regional regulation to avoid asymmetries and transfer environmental costs between markets; and the opportunity to promote mechanisms that facilitate the transfer and licensing of green technologies, accelerating the adoption of cleaner and more scalable production methods.

The associated project focuses on a comparative analysis of regulations on plastics, the circular economy and extended producer responsibility in Brazil, Chile, Colombia and Mexico. Its purpose is to formulate public policy recommendations and regional guidelines that integrate the environment, innovation and competition, with a focus on results applicable to the region. In particular, the microplastics component addresses the structural failures of recycling and waste management systems, promoting an approach that combines EPR, regulatory harmonisation and innovation tools (including the licensing of green technologies) to prevent persistent environmental and health damage.

Together, this workshop and the project's approach contribute to SIPLA's agenda aimed at extending product life cycles, reducing environmental footprints, and building regulatory frameworks that, without sacrificing environmental effectiveness, maintain an accessible environment for innovators and technological solutions in Latin America.