The world is struggling with plastic pollution — Canada is no exception
👉 "Less than 10 per cent of plastics in Canada end up recycled"
The feds have a new registry
"The registry is part of the federal government's overall effort to reduce plastic waste in Canada. Canadians throw away more than four million tonnes of plastic waste every year, according to Ottawa. Only nine per cent is recycled, with the bulk ending up in landfills."
"While industry claims it could be part of a circular plastics economy, experts say that chemical recycling is extremely damaging to the environment and provides no real benefits."
“Chemical recycling is really an industry ploy to convince the public and policymakers that we don't have to reduce plastic production in order to deal with plastic waste,”
Fewer than 60 multinationals are responsible for more than half of the world’s plastic pollution, with five responsible for a quarter of that.
The top five brands globally were The Coca-Cola Company (11%), PepsiCo (5%), Nestlé (3%), Danone (3%), and Altria (2%), accounting for 24% of the total branded count
"Wouldn’t it be nice to celebrate with the first-ever global treaty to curb the world’s mounting plastic pollution problem?
That’s not a completely unrealistic outcome. Indeed, since its inception in 1970, Earth Day has grown into an international movement with the potential to seriously influence policy. This year’s theme is Planet vs. Plastics, and global leaders will convene in Canada later in the week to lay plans for what could be the most significant environmental deal since the 2015 Paris Agreement..."
Global plastic treaty talks are happening. What do stakeholders want? By Valerie Volcovici, April 22, 2024
Global plastic pollution treaty talks hit critical stage in Canada - “Each day, the equivalent of 2,000 garbage trucks full of plastic are dumped into the world’s oceans, rivers and lakes, according to the United Nations Environment Programme. People are increasingly breathing, eating and drinking tiny plastic particles.” If these talks don’t include product caps, manufacturing constraints, they won’t work. #Recycling is not enough by itself to stem the tide of #PlasticPollution#PFAS#plastic#environment#oceans#capitalism#pollutionhttps://apnews.com/article/aad9d558ffaaab65a7e6a9cdd1ebe50f
Plastic pollution is increasingly becoming a global issue, and talks between 175 countries to agree on a plastic clean up treaty are faltering after more than a year of negotiations. Some experts pin much of the blame on the United States, which produces the most oil and gas but hasn’t been using its immense international influence to bring about a deal. NPR has more on the push to regulate plastic globally, and why the U.S. is dragging its feet in the negotiations.
The world dumps 2,000 truckloads of plastic into the ocean each day. Here’s where a lot of it ends up
The world produces around 400 million metric tons of plastic waste each year. Every day, 2,000 truckloads of it is dumped into the ocean, rivers and lakes.
On this #earthday, you can start doing your part. Filter your home water and buy glass or metal containers to port it around instead of buying water filled plastic bottles that are barely and rarely recycled. Buy your meat and fish wrapped in paper, not plastic film on a bed of styrofoam. Tell your local restaurant to use the new paper and compostable boxes instead of often black plastic (totally non-recyclable) containers or styrofoam clamshells. The more people that choose, the more the people who want to engage with us change.