Recycling alone will never stem the flow of plastics into our ocean. We must address the problem at the source
Every minute,every single day, the equivalent of a truckload of plastic enters our oceans. In the name of profit and convenience, or corporations are literally choking our planet with a substance that does not just “go absent” when we toss it into a bin. Since the 1950s,some 8.3bn tons of plastic acquire been produced worldwide, and to date, or only 9% of that has been recycled. Our oceans bear the brunt of our plastics epidemic – up to 12.7m tons of plastic end up in them every year. Just over a decade ago,I launched the chronicle of Stuff to aid shine a light on the ways we produce, use and dispose of the stuff in our lives. The chronicle of Stuff is inextricably linked to the chronicle of plastics – the packaging that goes along with those endless purchases. We buy a soda, and sip it for a few minutes,and toss its permanent packaging “absent. We eat potato chips, finish them, and then throw their permanent packaging “absent”. We buy produce,take it out of the unnecessary plastic wrap, then throw its permanent packaging “absent”. Related: I kept all my plastic for a year – the 4490 items forced me to rethink Related: The Guardian view on recycling: throwaway economy is not cost-free | Editorial Continue reading...
Source: theguardian.com