The root of the problem is that the environmental costs of producing difficult-to-recycle plastic are not being paid by the manufacturers. A solution is to make

The root of the problem is that the environmental costs of producing difficult-to-recycle plastic are not being paid by the manufacturers. A solution is to make manufacturers internalize those costs: require a deposit or fee for every gram of plastic manufactured or imported. Scale the fee to cover the actual cost of recycling. Manufacturers that start to use more environmentally-friendly materials will have lower costs, and will be able to sell their products at a lower price, leading to more market share. There will still be some use of difficult- or impossible-to-recycle plastics, but we as a society can express our distaste for storing garbage by adjusting the fees.