| Another day, another beach clean. The above photo is from a beach cleanup last month at Combers Beach in the Pacific Rim National Park Reserve, demonstrating once again an uncanny amount of industry and consumer plastic pollution, including tens of thousands of microplastics. A major development in turning off the tap to the plastic pollution crisis is the fourth round of negotiations for a Global Plastics Treaty, which we’ll be attending with our Surfrider US colleagues in Ottawa from April 23-29. During this historic negotiation, we need Canada to step up and play a strong role in developing a legally binding global treaty that:
Sets an ambitious global target for plastic production reduction, which is absolutely necessary to end plastic pollution by 2040; Centres justice by ensuring that human rights and Indigenous Rights are upheld and the voices of all frontline, waste picker and other impacted communities are prioritized; Focuses on reduction, reuse and refill solutions instead of recycling; Avoids the false solutions of “advanced” or “chemical” recycling; Makes plastics producers responsible for the environmental and social costs at every stage of the plastic life cycle; Bans single-use plastics; Eliminates fossil fuel subsidies; Prohibits toxic chemical additives in the production process; Aggressively limits fossil fuel industry influence. You can get up to date on the negotiations for a Global Plastics Treaty in our latest blog, and send us any questions you want answered! You can support a Global Plastics Treaty by signing this Greenpeace petition, and becoming a Surfrider Canada Member to support our work at the Global Plastics Treaty and our ongoing efforts to address common plastic pollutants that are being omitted in Canadian law and policy. |
