United States is world's biggest plastic polluter, report finds

United States is world's biggest plastic polluter, report finds

published : 2 Dec 2021 at 08:45

"WASHINGTON: The United States is by far the biggest contributor to global plastic waste in the world, according to a new report submitted to the federal government Wednesday that called for a national strategy to tackle the growing crisis.Overall, the US contributed around 42 million metric tonnes (MMT) in plastic waste in 2016 -- more than twice as much as China and more than the countries of the European Union combined, according to the analysis.

On average,

every American generates 130 kilogrammes of plastic waste per year,

with Britain next on the list at 99 kilos per person per year,

followed by South Korea at 88 kg per year.

Entitled "Reckoning with the US Role in Global Ocean Plastic Waste," the report was mandated by Congress as part of the Save Our Seas 2.0 Act, which became law in December 2020.

"The success of the 20th century miracle invention of plastics has also produced a global scale deluge of plastic waste seemingly everywhere we look," wrote Margaret Spring, chief science officer of Monterey Bay Aquarium, who chaired the committee of experts that compiled the report.

She added global plastic waste was an "environmental and social crisis" that impacted inland and coastal communities, polluted rivers, lakes and beaches, placed economic burdens on communities, endangered wildlife and contaminated waters that humans depend on for food.
Global plastic production rose from 20 million metric tons in 1966 to 381 MMT in 2015, a 20-fold increase over half a century, the report said.

Initially, attention to ocean waste focused solely on ship and marine-based sources, but it is now known that almost any plastic on land has the potential to reach the oceans via rivers and streams, the report added.

Research has shown nearly a thousand species of marine life are susceptible to plastic entanglement or to ingesting microplastics, which then make their way through the food web back to humans.

The report said an estimated 8 MMT of plastic waste enters the world annually, "the equivalent of dumping a garbage truck of plastic waste into the ocean every minute."

At the current rate, the amount of plastics discharged into the ocean could reach up to 53 MMT per year by 2030, roughly half of the total weight of fish caught from the ocean annually, it said.

Part of the reason is that while the generation of plastic waste in municipal solid waste has exploded, particularly since 1980, the scale of recycling has not kept up, resulting in more and more plastic finding its way into landfills.

The report offered a number of steps to address the crisis -- first among them, reducing virgin plastic production, for example by establishing a national cap.

Reduce single-use plastics

Other suggested actions include using materials that degrade more quickly and are more easily recycled, the reduction of certain single-use plastics, and improved waste management, such as techniques to remove microplastics from wastewater.

Improving waste capture technology would stop plastics in waterways, while stemming plastic disposal directly into the ocean itself also remains a priority.

Data collection is also a critical priority, the report added, calling for the US to establish tracking and monitoring systems to identify waste sources and hotspots.

The authors called for the country to develop its national strategy no later than the end of 2022.

"This is the most comprehensive and damning report on plastic pollution ever published," said Judith Enk, president of the Beyond Plastics nonprofit.

"It is a code red for plastics in the ocean and documents how litter cleanups are not going to save the ocean," she continued, adding it was urgent that policy makers and business leaders read the report and take action.

"The finger-pointing stops now. We can no longer ignore the United States' role in the plastic pollution crisis, one of the biggest environmental threats facing our oceans and our planet today," added Christy Leavitt, Oceana's plastics campaign director."

United States is world's biggest plastic polluter, report finds


At least, it has no effect on the world citizen's human rights.

:rolleyes:

Must be because they throw away all the plastic packaging on all that chinky shit they buy.

maybe the chinkies could use something else.

shouldnt this go into the chinky ohoh waffle thread?

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Saint Willy

shouldnt this go into the chinky ohoh waffle thread?

---

I think plastic pollution is an important environmental issue.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by harrybarracuda

I think plastic pollution is an important environmental issue.

---

Seems the Chinese are ahead of the game,in regards to plastic usage.

China: Single-Use Plastic Straw and Bag Ban Takes Effect

(Mar. 23, 2021) On January 1, 2021, a plastic ban took effect in China that prohibits restaurants throughout the country from providing single-use plastic straws and stores in the major cities from providing plastic shopping bags. These are among the restrictions on the production, sale, and use of single-use plastic products set out in a policy document jointly issued by the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) and the Ministry of Ecology and Environment on January 16, 2020. (The Opinions on Further Strengthening the Cleanup of Plastic Pollution (NDRC Opinions).) Provinces throughout the country have since issued their plans for implementing the national policy.
Plastic Bans
The NDRC Opinions lay out the following five-year roadmap to restrict the use of plastic products such as shopping bags, straws, and utensils by 2020, 2022, and 2025, respectively.

• Nondegradable plastic bags: These bags will be banned in shopping malls, supermarkets, pharmacies, book stores, and food takeout services in the major cities by the end of 2020, and in other cities and towns by 2022. Markets selling fresh produce are exempt from the ban until 2025.
• Single-use plastic utensils: By the end of 2020, restaurants throughout the country will be prohibited from using nondegradable single-use plastic straws. Other single-use plastic utensils will be banned for on-site dining in the cities by the end of 2020 and in the counties by 2022, and their use in takeout in the cities must be reduced by 30% by 2025.
• Single-use plastic items in hotels: Star-rated hotels throughout the country will be prohibited from voluntarily providing these items by 2022. The restriction will be expanded to other hotels and homestays by 2025.
• Plastic postal and courier packages: Postal and courier services in specified developed areas, including Beijing, Shanghai, Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Fujian, and Guangdong, will be prohibited from using nondegradable plastic packaging bags by 2022. This ban will be applied nationwide by 2025.

The production of cosmetic products containing plastic microbeads is also banned, according to the NDRC Opinions, and the sale of such products will be banned by the end of 2022. Other plastic products that are banned from being produced or sold in China include (1) ultra-thin plastic shopping bags with a thickness of less than 0.025 mm, (2) polyethylene agricultural mulching films with a thickness of less than 0.01 mm, and (3) single-use foam clamshells and plastic cotton swabs.
Penalties
Recent revisions to China’s Law on the Prevention and Control of Environmental Pollution Caused by Solid Waste (Solid Waste Law) took effect on September 1, 2020. Under this law, local authorities may impose a fine of 10,000 to 100,000 yuan (about US$1,545 to $15,460) on those failing to comply with the state’s restrictions on the use of nondegradable plastic bags and other single-use plastic products. (Solid Waste Law art. 106.)
Solid Waste Imports
The NDRC Opinions also mention that importing plastic waste into the country is completely banned. China announced the plan to phase out solid waste imports in 2017, and a full ban on importing all materials it classifies as solid waste took effect on January 1, 2021. Under the Solid Waste Law, for violations of the law against importing solid waste into Chinese territory, the customs agency will order the return of the waste and impose a fine of 500,000 to 5 million yuan (about US$77,305 to $773,050). (Art. 115.)

https://www.loc.gov/item/global-lega...-takes-effect/

It's great when the chinkies say these things but unfortunately it's usually just for show.

Well, we've already done that in lil' old Adelaide. :)

Y'know, if the yanks and the chinks actually got their damn heads together and tried to address real stuff, rather than just throwing barbs at each other- and so often making mountains out of molehills, maybe we might just get some things done. Lets start with the basic reality- We are never going to agree on everything.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by sabang

Well, we've already done that in lil' old Adelaide. :)

Y'know, if the yanks and the chinks actually got their damn heads together and tried to address real stuff, rather than just throwing barbs at each other- and so often making mountains out of molehills, maybe we might just get some things done. Lets start with the basic reality- We are never going to agree on everything.

---

JeeZ what happened in Glasgow@cop26 with the Aussies again?

Jeez what did. personally I pay little attention to scomo.

The Aussies didn't address their own stuff.

Australia did bring up the small matter of plastic pollution at one of these climate conferences, and got shouted down- because everyone wanted to talk about carbon emission.
And don't believe scomo, any more than you would bojo, or The donald. Phoneys and charlatans. scomo is only interested in your vote.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Chico

The Aussies didn't address their own stuff.

---

Actually they were a little more proactive than that. Not only did they not address it but they did their best to make sure no-one else did either.

At one level, it's a bit like telling a butcher he is not allowed to sell meat anymore. Not popular with the butcher, his family, and the people that rely on his expenditure.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by harrybarracuda

It's great when the chinkies say these things but unfortunately it's usually just for show.

---

Nothing Marvelous About Plastic Waste: China’s Pollution Endgame

August 22, 2019 By Jiaqiao Xiang

https://www.newsecuritybeat.org/wp-c...u-645x429.jpeg
Our world is drowning in plastic pollution with nearly 8 million tons of single-use plastic and some 700,000 tons of abandoned fishing gear leaking into marine ecosystems each year. Plastic waste endangers marine species. For example, animals become entangled in abandoned nets. Marine birds, fish, whales and sharks are sickened or die when they accidentally ingest plastic. According to a 2017 study, around 90 percent of single-use plastic that pollutes our oceans comes from 10 rivers, 6 of which are in China. No Avenger superheroes can make this problem go away; rather the world needs heroic efforts by consumers, businesses, and governments to curb these plastic leaks. Encouragingly, China’s war on pollution has catalyzed new bottom-up activism and top-down policies that are starting to spur action to reduce plastic leakage.https://www.newsecuritybeat.org/wp-c...00-556x430.jpg
(Photo Credit: One World One Ocean)

NGOs: Guardians of the Coastline

Along Shanghai’s coastline, a group of volunteers pick up trash, filling countless nylon bags with the bottles, straws, paper, and plastic that carpet the narrow beaches and paths. This is just one of nearly 200 waste pick-up events that Shanghai Rendu Ocean NGO Development Center has organized since 2007 to engage the public in ocean protection. According to its annual Coastal Trash Monitor Report, Rendu has collected 25 tons of waste, most of it plastic. Styrofoam, the ubiquitous food delivery packaging, makes up more than half of Rendu’s pickups. But recycling these Styrofoam food containers is difficult because of their lightness and food residue.
Rendu’s coastal cleanups have also turned into citizen science data collection activities. Rendu reported in its 2018 annual Beach Litter Brand Audit that 2,527 volunteers across 12 coastal cities identified and recorded brands and materials of collected waste. Some 11 percent of the trash collection belonged to 114 popular consumer brands including Master Kong, Coca-Cola, and Wahaha. Engaging citizens in brand audits of trash helps Rendu raise public awareness of ocean plastics and incentivize corporations to take responsibility for their waste.
Rendu is one of 231 NGOs, student clubs, and foundations operating in China that are dedicated to ocean protection. Most were established after 2000. And while these young, small organizations still lack the funding and expertise to solve the problem, they serve a purpose. Rendu’s founder, Liu Yonglong, argues that “the most significant impact of such NGO campaigns is not just cleaning up trash; rather it is increasing citizen awareness and participation around the waste.”
Agents of Waste

For nearly 40 years, China has been the world’s recycling bin. China began importing waste plastics and other materials in the early 1980s to build a recycling industry to generate valuable feedstocks for Chinese manufacturers. China became an inexpensive outlet for recyclable waste from U.S. and European cities. But as these imports grew, problems with illegal imports and poorly managed waste processing businesses emerged in rural China. The imported plastic recyclables waste also added another 12 percent to domestic plastic waste that China has increasingly struggled to handle. To stop human health challenges and environmental pollution stemming from low-tech waste sorting operations and focus on solving its domestic waste problems, the Chinese government enacted the National Sword policy in January 2018, banning the import of most recyclable waste.
A decade before wielding the National Sword, China banned free single-use plastic bags nationwide and required consumers to pay a small fee for plastic bags. Plastic bag usage was reduced by two-thirds in large shops and supermarkets by 2016, saving 1.4 million tons of plastics. However, due to the lack of enforcement and public education, single-use plastic bags are still widely available in private shops and markets.
The 13th Five Year Plan (FYP) marks the first time Chinese policymakers developed category-specific plans with clear benchmarks for waste. The plan aims to hit a 73 percent reuse rate for industrial solid waste and a 90 percent treatment rate for domestic waste in rural areas by 2020. The Ministry of Ecology and Environment’s ambitious Zero-Waste City plan released in late 2018 champions extended producer responsibility, reduction of all forms of urban waste, and a 100 percent recycling rate in 10 pilot cities. To increase recycling rates, Shanghai was the first Chinese city to launch compulsory waste sorting, handing out punishments to citizens and companies that do not comply. Additionally, the governments of Jilin, Hainan, and Beijing have either implemented or are rolling out single-use plastic bans and/or waste sorting policies. Such policies are turning up the pressure on cities around the country to set up better data, transport, and waste management infrastructure.
Tech Giants: “With Great Power Comes Great Responsibility”

Chinese citizens are increasingly getting their meals delivered on wheels. Every day, more than 20 million food delivery orders are made over the Meituan app alone. Packaging for online goods and food produced a staggering amount of waste in 2017—1.47 billion plastic bags and 330 million rolls of plastic tape, enough to encircle the earth over 600 times.
China’s food delivery market alone consumes nearly 100 million take-out plastic boxes per day. The potential environmental impact of these mountains of boxes and plastic bags led the NGO Green Volunteer League of Chongqing to take the food delivery app Ele.me to court, demanding it take responsibility for its waste. Some online delivery companies are taking steps to close the loop on their waste packaging to avoid bad press and being taken to court.

• Green Hills Project (Meituan) established a Chief Environment Officer who oversees a collaboration of 10,000 restaurants and more than 100 package producers to improve sustainability by 2020. Green Hills also launched a campaign to use recycled plastic food containers to build shared bikes.
• Blue Planet Project (Ele.me) has saved more than 16 million single-use utensils in just half a year by providing a “no utensils” option on their app. The Blue Planet Restaurant Standard has encouraged restaurants to avoid overpackaging and use biodegradable plastics or other greener materials.

• Cainiao, part of the Alibaba Group, launched the Green Movement Plan, which focuses on creating green packaging using 15 percent fewer materials.

Tech giants in China are making efforts to promote recycling and waste reduction. The tech startup, Yellow Dog, installed more than 10,000 smart trash boxes across China for users to recycle waste in exchange for Wechat money. Ant Forest, a mini-charity game embedded in a popular payment app, Alipay, aims to encourage low carbon behavior among consumers. Some 500 million users log their daily low-carbon activities such as using public transportation, walking, and abstaining from plastic bags, in order to earn points to “grow” a tree. Once these e-trees grow to full height, Ant Forest will plant a real tree in different areas, such as Inner Mongolia, Gansu Province, etc. By April 2019, Ant Forest already planted 100 million trees, covering 917,000 mu (61,000 hectares) of land. (See screenshot below of my Ant Forest account, where friends sometimes “steal” my saved carbon for their trees, but sometimes they water my tree to help it grow!)

All Hands on Deck: “Avengers” Assemble

The growing presence of plastic in China can be curbed only if all actors in the plastic supply chain participate in the dialogue for change. Top-down solutions alone will not solve China’s plastic waste problem. Educating the public to make plastic-free choices not only creates greater space for this dialogue, but also invites bottom-up solutions, such as Shanghai’s Rendu citizen science initiative, that often put pressure on lawmakers and corporations to be catalysts of change. So, “all hands on deck!” Both captain and crew (dear reader, even you.) in China and beyond can be a potential plastic waste reduction superhero to halt plastic waste leakage into the ocean.
https://www.newsecuritybeat.org/wp-c...28-645x430.jpg

A good start might be to do what we've been doing here or several years- charge for plastic bags! It's considered naff here to turn up to a supermarket without your own hessian (or something similar) bag- but if you do, you will be charged extra for the bags the supermarket supplies. Next logical step- supermarket only sells cloth, not plastic bags. That'll teach 'em.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by sabang

A good start might be to do what we've been doing here or several years- charge for plastic bags! It's considered naff here to turn up to a supermarket without your own hessian (or something similar) bag- but if you do, you will be charged extra for the bags the supermarket supplies. Next logical step- supermarket only sells cloth, not plastic bags. That'll teach 'em.

---

And go back to glass bottles, with a deposit on.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by sabang

Australia did bring up the small matter of plastic pollution at one of these climate conferences, and got shouted down- because everyone wanted to talk about carbon emission.
And don't believe scomo, any more than you would bojo, or The donald. Phoneys and charlatans. scomo is only interested in your vote.

---

Yep.


Attachment 79372

Quote:

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Originally Posted by sabang

scomo is only interested in your vote.

---

So what politician isn't? They are all the same.

They all Poll and they all make decisions based on polling. They think one way...votes.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by OhOh

United States is world's biggest plastic polluter, report finds

published : 2 Dec 2021 at 08:45

"WASHINGTON: The United States is by far the biggest contributor to global plastic waste in the world, according to a new report submitted to the federal government Wednesday that called for a national strategy to tackle the growing crisis.Overall, the US contributed around 42 million metric tonnes (MMT) in plastic waste in 2016 -- more than twice as much as China and more than the countries of the European Union combined, according to the analysis.

On average,

every American generates 130 kilogrammes of plastic waste per year,

with Britain next on the list at 99 kilos per person per year,

followed by South Korea at 88 kg per year.

Entitled "Reckoning with the US Role in Global Ocean Plastic Waste," the report was mandated by Congress as part of the Save Our Seas 2.0 Act, which became law in December 2020.

"The success of the 20th century miracle invention of plastics has also produced a global scale deluge of plastic waste seemingly everywhere we look," wrote Margaret Spring, chief science officer of Monterey Bay Aquarium, who chaired the committee of experts that compiled the report.

She added global plastic waste was an "environmental and social crisis" that impacted inland and coastal communities, polluted rivers, lakes and beaches, placed economic burdens on communities, endangered wildlife and contaminated waters that humans depend on for food.
Global plastic production rose from 20 million metric tons in 1966 to 381 MMT in 2015, a 20-fold increase over half a century, the report said.

Initially, attention to ocean waste focused solely on ship and marine-based sources, but it is now known that almost any plastic on land has the potential to reach the oceans via rivers and streams, the report added.

Research has shown nearly a thousand species of marine life are susceptible to plastic entanglement or to ingesting microplastics, which then make their way through the food web back to humans.

The report said an estimated 8 MMT of plastic waste enters the world annually, "the equivalent of dumping a garbage truck of plastic waste into the ocean every minute."

At the current rate, the amount of plastics discharged into the ocean could reach up to 53 MMT per year by 2030, roughly half of the total weight of fish caught from the ocean annually, it said.

Part of the reason is that while the generation of plastic waste in municipal solid waste has exploded, particularly since 1980, the scale of recycling has not kept up, resulting in more and more plastic finding its way into landfills.

The report offered a number of steps to address the crisis -- first among them, reducing virgin plastic production, for example by establishing a national cap.

Reduce single-use plastics

Other suggested actions include using materials that degrade more quickly and are more easily recycled, the reduction of certain single-use plastics, and improved waste management, such as techniques to remove microplastics from wastewater.

Improving waste capture technology would stop plastics in waterways, while stemming plastic disposal directly into the ocean itself also remains a priority.

Data collection is also a critical priority, the report added, calling for the US to establish tracking and monitoring systems to identify waste sources and hotspots.

The authors called for the country to develop its national strategy no later than the end of 2022.

"This is the most comprehensive and damning report on plastic pollution ever published," said Judith Enk, president of the Beyond Plastics nonprofit.

"It is a code red for plastics in the ocean and documents how litter cleanups are not going to save the ocean," she continued, adding it was urgent that policy makers and business leaders read the report and take action.

"The finger-pointing stops now. We can no longer ignore the United States' role in the plastic pollution crisis, one of the biggest environmental threats facing our oceans and our planet today," added Christy Leavitt, Oceana's plastics campaign director."

United States is world's biggest plastic polluter, report finds


At least, it has no effect on the world citizen's human rights.

:rolleyes:

---

You failed to mention that much of that waste is recycled in comparison to many countries such as Asia where the discarded waste has very little that is recycled. A better measure is the percentage that contributes to ocean pollution.

Attachment 79374Attachment 79374


OhOh what tangled webs we weave, when we practise to deceive.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by OhOh

United States is world's biggest plastic polluter, report finds

published : 2 Dec 2021 at 08:45

"WASHINGTON: The United States is by far the biggest contributor to global plastic waste in the world, according to a new report submitted to the federal government Wednesday that called for a national strategy to tackle the growing crisis.Overall, the US contributed around 42 million metric tonnes (MMT) in plastic waste in 2016 -- more than twice as much as China and more than the countries of the European Union combined, according to the analysis.

On average,

every American generates 130 kilogrammes of plastic waste per year,

with Britain next on the list at 99 kilos per person per year,

followed by South Korea at 88 kg per year.

Entitled "Reckoning with the US Role in Global Ocean Plastic Waste," the report was mandated by Congress as part of the Save Our Seas 2.0 Act, which became law in December 2020.

"The success of the 20th century miracle invention of plastics has also produced a global scale deluge of plastic waste seemingly everywhere we look," wrote Margaret Spring, chief science officer of Monterey Bay Aquarium, who chaired the committee of experts that compiled the report.

She added global plastic waste was an "environmental and social crisis" that impacted inland and coastal communities, polluted rivers, lakes and beaches, placed economic burdens on communities, endangered wildlife and contaminated waters that humans depend on for food.
Global plastic production rose from 20 million metric tons in 1966 to 381 MMT in 2015, a 20-fold increase over half a century, the report said.

Initially, attention to ocean waste focused solely on ship and marine-based sources, but it is now known that almost any plastic on land has the potential to reach the oceans via rivers and streams, the report added.

Research has shown nearly a thousand species of marine life are susceptible to plastic entanglement or to ingesting microplastics, which then make their way through the food web back to humans.

The report said an estimated 8 MMT of plastic waste enters the world annually, "the equivalent of dumping a garbage truck of plastic waste into the ocean every minute."

At the current rate, the amount of plastics discharged into the ocean could reach up to 53 MMT per year by 2030, roughly half of the total weight of fish caught from the ocean annually, it said.

Part of the reason is that while the generation of plastic waste in municipal solid waste has exploded, particularly since 1980, the scale of recycling has not kept up, resulting in more and more plastic finding its way into landfills.

The report offered a number of steps to address the crisis -- first among them, reducing virgin plastic production, for example by establishing a national cap.

Reduce single-use plastics

Other suggested actions include using materials that degrade more quickly and are more easily recycled, the reduction of certain single-use plastics, and improved waste management, such as techniques to remove microplastics from wastewater.

Improving waste capture technology would stop plastics in waterways, while stemming plastic disposal directly into the ocean itself also remains a priority.

Data collection is also a critical priority, the report added, calling for the US to establish tracking and monitoring systems to identify waste sources and hotspots.

The authors called for the country to develop its national strategy no later than the end of 2022.

"This is the most comprehensive and damning report on plastic pollution ever published," said Judith Enk, president of the Beyond Plastics nonprofit.

"It is a code red for plastics in the ocean and documents how litter cleanups are not going to save the ocean," she continued, adding it was urgent that policy makers and business leaders read the report and take action.

"The finger-pointing stops now. We can no longer ignore the United States' role in the plastic pollution crisis, one of the biggest environmental threats facing our oceans and our planet today," added Christy Leavitt, Oceana's plastics campaign director."

United States is world's biggest plastic polluter, report finds


At least, it has no effect on the world citizen's human rights.

:rolleyes:

---

You failed to mention that much of that waste is recycled in comparison to many countries such as Asia where the discarded waste has very little that is recycled. A better measure is the percentage that contributes to ocean pollution. Just cant seem to find the Mississippi.

Attachment 79375


OhOh what tangled webs we weave, when we practise to deceive.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by OhOh

United States is world's biggest plastic polluter, report finds

published : 2 Dec 2021 at 08:45

"WASHINGTON: The United States is by far the biggest contributor to global plastic waste in the world, according to a new report submitted to the federal government Wednesday that called for a national strategy to tackle the growing crisis.Overall, the US contributed around 42 million metric tonnes (MMT) in plastic waste in 2016 -- more than twice as much as China and more than the countries of the European Union combined, according to the analysis.

On average,

every American generates 130 kilogrammes of plastic waste per year,

with Britain next on the list at 99 kilos per person per year,

followed by South Korea at 88 kg per year.

Entitled "Reckoning with the US Role in Global Ocean Plastic Waste," the report was mandated by Congress as part of the Save Our Seas 2.0 Act, which became law in December 2020.

"The success of the 20th century miracle invention of plastics has also produced a global scale deluge of plastic waste seemingly everywhere we look," wrote Margaret Spring, chief science officer of Monterey Bay Aquarium, who chaired the committee of experts that compiled the report.

She added global plastic waste was an "environmental and social crisis" that impacted inland and coastal communities, polluted rivers, lakes and beaches, placed economic burdens on communities, endangered wildlife and contaminated waters that humans depend on for food.
Global plastic production rose from 20 million metric tons in 1966 to 381 MMT in 2015, a 20-fold increase over half a century, the report said.

Initially, attention to ocean waste focused solely on ship and marine-based sources, but it is now known that almost any plastic on land has the potential to reach the oceans via rivers and streams, the report added.

Research has shown nearly a thousand species of marine life are susceptible to plastic entanglement or to ingesting microplastics, which then make their way through the food web back to humans.

The report said an estimated 8 MMT of plastic waste enters the world annually, "the equivalent of dumping a garbage truck of plastic waste into the ocean every minute."

At the current rate, the amount of plastics discharged into the ocean could reach up to 53 MMT per year by 2030, roughly half of the total weight of fish caught from the ocean annually, it said.

Part of the reason is that while the generation of plastic waste in municipal solid waste has exploded, particularly since 1980, the scale of recycling has not kept up, resulting in more and more plastic finding its way into landfills.

The report offered a number of steps to address the crisis -- first among them, reducing virgin plastic production, for example by establishing a national cap.

Reduce single-use plastics

Other suggested actions include using materials that degrade more quickly and are more easily recycled, the reduction of certain single-use plastics, and improved waste management, such as techniques to remove microplastics from wastewater.

Improving waste capture technology would stop plastics in waterways, while stemming plastic disposal directly into the ocean itself also remains a priority.

Data collection is also a critical priority, the report added, calling for the US to establish tracking and monitoring systems to identify waste sources and hotspots.

The authors called for the country to develop its national strategy no later than the end of 2022.

"This is the most comprehensive and damning report on plastic pollution ever published," said Judith Enk, president of the Beyond Plastics nonprofit.

"It is a code red for plastics in the ocean and documents how litter cleanups are not going to save the ocean," she continued, adding it was urgent that policy makers and business leaders read the report and take action.

"The finger-pointing stops now. We can no longer ignore the United States' role in the plastic pollution crisis, one of the biggest environmental threats facing our oceans and our planet today," added Christy Leavitt, Oceana's plastics campaign director."

United States is world's biggest plastic polluter, report finds


At least, it has no effect on the world citizen's human rights.

:rolleyes:

---

Attachment 79376

Oh(Oh) what tangled webs we weave, when we practise to deceive.

United States is world's biggest plastic polluter, report finds


​Amex, Visa or Mastercard?

I was surprised to find that Japan wasn't listed, given their predisposition to generous packaging.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Hugh Cow

Oh(Oh) what tangled webs we weave, when we practise to deceive.

---

You expected to him to be genuine . . . why does his shit stay in Gen Pop?

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Hugh Cow

OhOh what tangled webs we weave, when we practise to deceive.

---

The report is a NaGastani government release.

Hardly my web of deception, or any foreign countries. Although your use of 2015 data suggests cherry-picking by yourself.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Hugh Cow

Entitled "Reckoning with the US Role in Global Ocean Plastic Waste," the report was mandated by Congress as part of the Save Our Seas 2.0 Act, which became law in December 2020.

---

You may wish to investigate the NaGastani Congress for ordering the report and publishing the findings.

Poke your accusation elsewhere.

Your charts are from 2015.

You may wish to update your "knowledge" to the current situation for 202/21 figures. Or of course, continue wearing your pink glasses.

China tightens rules on waste imports for recycling from around the world

Wednesday December 02 2020,

"Once a global dumping ground, China is to halt all solid waste imports next month in a move that will increase the pressure on other, often poorer, Asian nations that have become alternative destinations for the world’s rubbish.

Beijing said that from January it would no longer grant any exemptions to a ban introduced in 2017 on accepting waste plastic, scrap paper, textiles and some other products. China is trying to reduce pollution and encourage recyclers to treat the country’s own huge volumes of domestic rubbish instead.
....

Continues behind a paywall:

China tightens rules on waste imports for recycling from around the world | World | The Times

Total ban on imports of rubbish to China piles pressure on Asian neighbours

Veto on accepting overseas junk marks culmination of three-year reduction policy

Joe Evans

2 Dec 2020

"China is halting all waste imports from overseas to its shores from next month, in a move expected to see foreign countries instead dumping tonnes of rubbish on poorer Asian nations.Beijing has confirmed that as of 1 January, China will no longer accept “waste plastic, scrap paper, textiles and some other products”, ending exemptions to a partial ban enacted in 2017, The Times reports.

Since the 1980s, China has accepted vast quantities of waste products from foreign nations, with the US, Japan and Germany among the biggest exporters.
Indeed, China has been the “world’s largest importer of rubbish” for years, France 24 reports. Some of this waste has been cleaned, crushed and developed into raw materials for the Asian superpower’s exploding industrialist industry.

But the vast amounts of rubbish deposited on Chinese shores has “often lead to pollution when the materials cannot be recycled or disposed of properly”, the news site continues. Fed up with being “the world’s rubbish bin”, the government began to “close China’s doors to foreign waste” in January 2018.

Three years later, Beijing is poised to implement a total ban on dumping, storage and disposal of waste products from overseas on Chinese territory. The importation of recycled materials processed outside China will still be permitted, however, “so that manufacturers still have access to resources”, says The Times.

China’s solid waste imports have already decreased significantly as a result of the reduction policy. The country imported 13.48 million tonnes of junk last year - a 40% decrease on 2018.
Most of the surplus junk is going to countries in southeast Asia, “where many of the recycling facilities are owned by Chinese companies”, the paper reports.

And following the implementation of the total ban, the flow of rubbish is expected to intensify to poorer nations within China’s immediate orbit, including India, Laos, Malaysia, Vietnam, Thailand, Indonesia and the Philippines."

https://www.theweek.co.uk/108842/chi...worlds-rubbish

Note this is imported waste, I'm sure there is some waste production in China itself.

Possibly they export it, as new products, to the western hypocrites .

:)

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Originally Posted by OhOh

I'm sure there is some waste production in China itself.

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Why are you such a disingenuous fuckwit?

This is pretty interesting... it just shows that regardless of who produces it, once that plastic is in the oceans it's there forever. What a shocking way to treat the planet we live on.


Pacific Ocean garbage patch is immense plastic habitat

https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/976/cp...eanvoyages.png

Scientists have discovered marine animals living on plastic debris in an area of the open ocean dubbed "the Great Pacific Garbage Patch".

Many of the creatures are coastal species, living miles from their usual habitats, on a patch halfway between the coast of California and Hawaii.
Plants and animals, including anemones, tiny marine bugs, molluscs and crabs, were found on 90% of the debris.

Scientists are concerned that plastic may help transport invasive species.

The study examined plastic items more than 5cm (2in) in diameter gathered from a gyre - an area where circulating currents cause floating debris to accumulate - in the Pacific.

Lead researcher Dr Linsey Haram, who carried out the work at the Smithsonian Environmental Research Centre, said: "Plastics are more permanent than many of the natural debris that you previously have seen in the open ocean. They're creating a more permanent habitat in this area."

Dr Haram worked with the Ocean Voyages Institute, a charity that collects plastic pollution on sailing expeditions, and with oceanographers from the University of Hawaii at Manoa.

https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/976/cp...011_debris.png

The world has at least five plastic-infested gyres. This one is thought to hold the most floating plastic - an estimated 79,000 tonnes in a region of more than 610,000 square miles (1.6m sq km).

"All sorts of stuff ends up out there," said Dr Haram. "It's not an island of plastic, but there's definitely a large amount of plastic corralled there."

Much of that is micro-plastic - very difficult to see with the naked eye. But there are also larger items, including abandoned fishing nets, buoys and even vessels that have been floating in the gyre since the Japanese tsunami in 2011.

The researchers, who reported their findings in the journal Nature Communications, initially embarked on the investigation following that devastating tsunami.

The disaster caused tonnes of debris to be ejected into the Pacific ocean, and hundreds of coastal Japanese marine species were found alive on items that landed on the shores of the North American Pacific coast and the Hawaiian Islands.

"We want to get a handle on how plastics may be a transport for invasive species to coasts," Dr Haram told BBC News.

https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/976/cp..._066035935.jpg

Some of the organisms the researchers found on the plastic items they examined were open-ocean species - organisms that survive by "rafting" on floating debris. But the most eye-opening finding, Dr Haram said, was the diversity of coastal species on the plastic.

"Well over half of the items had coastal species on them," she said. "That creates a lot of questions about what it means to be a coastal species."

The scientists said the discovery highlighted another "unintended consequence" of plastic pollution - a problem only expected to grow.
One previous study estimated that a total of 25,000 million tonnes of plastic waste would be generated by 2050.

Pacific Ocean garbage patch is immense plastic habitat - BBC News

Microplastics are going to be like that teflon shit. In everyone's bloodstream sooner or later.

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Originally Posted by harrybarracuda

Microplastics are going to be like that teflon shit. In everyone's bloodstream sooner or later.

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most probably are already, you not seen the research on fish and plastics

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Originally Posted by Chico

most probably are already, you not seen the research on fish and plastics

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Not really a fish fan tbh. But apparently they're in the atmosphere already.