Europe to Ban Single-Use Plastics
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Thinking Sustainably
This week the European Parliament voted to ban single-use plastics (The Guardian). An overwhelming majority of elected representatives supported the motion to cut down on plastic pollution and address the colossal amount of plastic waste that is ending up in our oceans (check out the Ocean Conservancy), our food (read The Conversation), and us (get the breakdown with Scientific American)!
We Can Do Better!
I’m really happy to see this kind of political action taking place in Europe, and in a number of countries around the world. Just last month Jamaica announced a ban on a number of single-use plastic items (including bags, straws and styrofoam). They join Kenya, Morocco, and Rwanda (which was actually the world’s first country to introduce a ban back in 2007). It’s about time we see other nations step up!
While there are cities in the US (Boston, Seattle, & San Francisco) and Canada (Montreal & Vancouver) that have also committed to the ban of single use plastic, the federal government is lagging behind. Single-use plastics are polluting our planet, choking up our oceans, and entering our food-chain. If you agree that it’s time to move past it your welcome to sign on to the petitions below (see Online Petitions Explained).
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[…] Recycling isn’t quite the solution either. While it may lessen the environment impact to a certain extent, the ideal is to dramatically cut back on its use, and thereby avoid the recycling issue altogether (See Europe to Ban Single-Use Plastics). […]