Malaysia sent 3,737 tons of plastic waste to 13 countries, confirming it would not make "the landfill" of the world.

Environment Minister Yeo Bee Yin said yesterday she had asked to transfer the plastic waste contained in these 150 containers to 13 countries. In particular, 43 containers were sent to France, 42 containers sent to the UK, the US received 17 containers and Canada received 11 containers.

The Malaysian government wants to ensure that it "does not become the world's landfill," Yeo added in a long Facebook post. The countries that shipped the garbage to Malaysia and the shipping companies are responsible for paying the cost of returning the waste.

These plastic containers have been illegally shipped to Malaysia since 2018, when China banned the import of plastic waste two years ago as part of efforts to improve the environment. China's decision to stop importing plastic has had a major impact on the global supply chain, prompting intermediaries to find new destinations for plastic waste lots, including Malaysia.

A report by the environmental organization Greenpeace showed that in the first 7 months of 2018, the amount of plastic waste exported from the US to Malaysia was double compared to the previous year. Waste dumping also took place in the Philippines, putting the country in diplomatic tensions with Canada last year.

In May, governments of 187 countries, including Malaysia, agreed to add plastic waste to the Basel Convention regulating the transport of hazardous materials from one country to another, to combat the impact of of plastic waste pollution worldwide. The United States is one of the countries not party to this convention.