JLW
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- Sep 16, 2012
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On the heels of contentious climate talks in Azerbaijan, negotiators from around the globe are descending on Busan, South Korea, this week with another formidable goal: the world’s first treaty designed to tackle plastic pollution’s explosive growth.
On the table is a proposal that aims to cut down on the millions of tons of plastic waste discarded each year. And a broad coalition of nations is seeking to go a step further and rein in plastic production, with a focus on restricting single-use plastic.
That notion had gained traction leading up to the final round of talks in Busan, with even the United States, a major plastics producer, tentatively backing the United Nations-led effort......
Now, few expect the United States to sign on to an eventual treaty at all. And with deep-seated opposition from oil and gas nations like Saudi Arabia and Russia — which, like the United States, produce the fossil fuels used to make plastic — some delegates are wondering whether any agreement is possible by the scheduled end of the talks on Sunday.....
There is one consensus among most delegates: The world has a colossal plastic waste problem.
The world produces nearly half a billion tons of plastic each year, more than double the amount from two decades ago, and much of that turns up on coastlines and river banks, as well as in whales, birds and other animals that ingest them. Researchers have estimated that one garbage truck’s worth of plastic enters the ocean every minute.
Scientists have also sounded the alarm on microplastics in the environment and in the human body, as well as the thousands of chemicals in plastic that can leach into food, water and the environment. Producing and transporting plastic releases planet-warming gases — if plastics were a country, it would be the world’s fifth-highest emitter of greenhouse gases. Recycling isn’t keeping up; scientists estimate that only 9 percent of plastic waste generated globally is recycled.
Developing nations have been at the forefront of efforts to tackle plastic pollution, as they have struggled to cope with waste sent by rich countries...
www.nytimes.com
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We all say we love to say we "throw away" our garbage. The truth is there is no such thing as "throwing away" your garbage. It is merely transferring it from your home to another location. In the case of plastics/used clothes, etc. it usually means a transfer to a third-world nation where they dump it into the ocean. Of course, pollution knows no artificial human erected boundaries and the pollution winds up across the globe and part of our food supply.
It is possible to substantially slow down and halt the rate of plastic pollution:
"Scientists say a solution is possible. A recent paper in the journal Science estimated that just four of the policies that have been discussed so far at the plastic treaty talks could reduce mismanaged plastic waste by more than 90 percent, and plastic-related greenhouse gas emissions by one-third. Those policies include capping new plastic production at 2020 levels and mandating that new products be made with at least 40 percent recycled plastic.
“It is actually possible to nearly end plastic pollution with this treaty,” Douglas J. McCauley, a professor of ocean science at the University of California, Santa Barbara, said in an email. “It was also sobering to see that without a treaty, plastic pollution will double by 2050,” he added.
Ibid
The question is are you in favor of an international plastics pollution treaty?
On the table is a proposal that aims to cut down on the millions of tons of plastic waste discarded each year. And a broad coalition of nations is seeking to go a step further and rein in plastic production, with a focus on restricting single-use plastic.
That notion had gained traction leading up to the final round of talks in Busan, with even the United States, a major plastics producer, tentatively backing the United Nations-led effort......
Now, few expect the United States to sign on to an eventual treaty at all. And with deep-seated opposition from oil and gas nations like Saudi Arabia and Russia — which, like the United States, produce the fossil fuels used to make plastic — some delegates are wondering whether any agreement is possible by the scheduled end of the talks on Sunday.....
There is one consensus among most delegates: The world has a colossal plastic waste problem.
The world produces nearly half a billion tons of plastic each year, more than double the amount from two decades ago, and much of that turns up on coastlines and river banks, as well as in whales, birds and other animals that ingest them. Researchers have estimated that one garbage truck’s worth of plastic enters the ocean every minute.
Scientists have also sounded the alarm on microplastics in the environment and in the human body, as well as the thousands of chemicals in plastic that can leach into food, water and the environment. Producing and transporting plastic releases planet-warming gases — if plastics were a country, it would be the world’s fifth-highest emitter of greenhouse gases. Recycling isn’t keeping up; scientists estimate that only 9 percent of plastic waste generated globally is recycled.
Developing nations have been at the forefront of efforts to tackle plastic pollution, as they have struggled to cope with waste sent by rich countries...
The World Seeks an End to Plastic Pollution at Talks in South Korea
Many nations hope to reduce the half a billion tons of plastic made each year. But pushback from plastic and oil producers, and Donald Trump’s election, could scuttle an agreement.
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We all say we love to say we "throw away" our garbage. The truth is there is no such thing as "throwing away" your garbage. It is merely transferring it from your home to another location. In the case of plastics/used clothes, etc. it usually means a transfer to a third-world nation where they dump it into the ocean. Of course, pollution knows no artificial human erected boundaries and the pollution winds up across the globe and part of our food supply.
It is possible to substantially slow down and halt the rate of plastic pollution:
"Scientists say a solution is possible. A recent paper in the journal Science estimated that just four of the policies that have been discussed so far at the plastic treaty talks could reduce mismanaged plastic waste by more than 90 percent, and plastic-related greenhouse gas emissions by one-third. Those policies include capping new plastic production at 2020 levels and mandating that new products be made with at least 40 percent recycled plastic.
“It is actually possible to nearly end plastic pollution with this treaty,” Douglas J. McCauley, a professor of ocean science at the University of California, Santa Barbara, said in an email. “It was also sobering to see that without a treaty, plastic pollution will double by 2050,” he added.
Ibid
The question is are you in favor of an international plastics pollution treaty?
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