Plastic Pollution
“The unprecedented plastic waste tide plaguing our oceans and shores, can become as limited as our chosen relationship with plastics, which involves a dramatic behavioral change on our part…” — Claire Le Guern
November 25, 2024
These countries produce the most plastic pollution in our oceans – and they’re not the ones you might have guessed – the Independent
Excerpt:
Trillions of pieces of plastic are estimated to float in oceans around the world
There are likely hundreds of trillions of pieces of plastic floating around the world’s oceans – and one country has been named the worst polluter.
Millions of tons of plastic end up in Earth’s water bodies every year, and less than 10 percent of the world’s annual plastic production is recycled, according to the World Health Organization. Ocean plastic pollution can carry disease, harm wildlife, and alter the ocean’s critical role taking in carbon dioxide and helping to regulate the planet’s climate.
While China and the US are the world’s largest plastic producers, as well as the countries with the largest emissions of planet-warming greenhouse gases, a new list has named the Philippines as the country that produces the most plastic pollution found in ocean waters.
The Southeast Asian country produces 7.27 pounds (3.30 kilograms) of mismanaged plastic waste per person each year, according to a new report from business energy consulting group Utility Bidder. The group used the research and data-sharing publication Our World in Data.
The US produces fewer than 0.02 pounds (0.01 kilograms) per person.
However, when looking at countries with the highest number of waste exports per person, the Philippines is ranked 42nd.
South America’s Suriname ranked second, producing 6.37 pounds (2.89 kilograms) per person. Other island nations around the world rank within the top five, including Trinidad and Tobago and Saint Lucia, which came in third and fourth, respectively. Malaysia rounded out the top five, with about 5 pounds (2.29 kilograms) per person each year…
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More on Plastic Pollution . . .
Chemist Identifies Mystery ‘Blobs’ Washing Up in Newfoundland – the New York Times
A researcher thinks he knows what has been coming ashore on miles of beaches. Canada’s environmental agency says it is still looking into it…
Plastic pollution is changing entire Earth system, scientists find – the Guardian
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New Satellite Tech Tracks Plastic on Beaches – SciTechDaily
A satellite imagery tool from RMIT University (Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology) now allows for the effective detection of beach plastics, aiding cleanup operations and combating ocean pollution…
L.A. County sues Pepsi and Coca-Cola over their role in ongoing plastic pollution crisis – the Los Angeles Times
Los Angeles County has filed a lawsuit against the world’s largest beverage companies — Coca-Cola and PepsiCo — claiming that the soda and drink makers lied to the public about the effectiveness of plastic recycling and, as a result, left county residents and ecosystems choking in discarded plastic….
Many plastics in Bay Area blue bins end up in landfills. Here’s what is actually recycled – the San Francisco Chronicle
This week, California Attorney General Rob Bonta sued ExxonMobil for perpetuating what he called a decades-long fantasy: that the world’s plastics problem would just disappear with better recycling…
The Cure for Disposable Plastic Crap Is Here—and It’s Loony – Wired Magazine
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The people who clean up the world’s trash say some companies’ statements of support are little more than lip service…
How to create a ‘world without waste’? Here are the plastic industry’s ideas – Grist Magazine
A deep dive into the petrochemical industry’s proposals for the global plastics treaty….
A new report looks at major companies’ efforts to address plastic waste — and finds them lacking – Grist Magazine
Of the 147 companies with a package recyclability goal, only 15 percent were on track to meet it…