Following on from Plastic Free July…
I thought today I would have a roam around the world to see if the initiatives that I wrote about in 2019 have gone forward or backwards…or just disappeared into thin air…
Back in 2019…UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres warns the world is running out of time to contain climate change…as we have COP26 coming up…The UK will host the 26th UN Climate Change Conference of the Parties (COP26) in Glasgow on 31 October – 12 November 2021.
The COP26 summit will bring parties together to accelerate action towards the goals of the Paris Agreement and the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change.
Today I am having a look at what is happening in the run-up to COP26...are those figures and plans made in 2019 come to fruition …have they gone forward or backwards?
This is one of my favourite beaches...so very beautiful..idyllic one might say…HOWEVER, what you don’t see is the beach after every high tide goes out…That beautiful blue water..what lies beneath it unless you go for a swim or a snorkel you don’t see that either…
Plastic bags, disposable napkins, plastic straws, plastic takeaway cups, glitter I could go on how could we not notice how could we not realise…did we not see the warning or more to the point heed them…I will be honest here I have read and seen lots over the years and still I didn’t heed the signs…I suppose I was guilty of thinking or not thinking and thought the problem was being addressed…By someone else…
Complacency is the word …
Thailand…
An obvious choice as I live here …Thailand is looking to ban the use of very thin single-use plastic bags in 2022, followed by single-use plastic glasses and straws three years …Thailand is also to ban foreign plastic waste from 2021. Thailand and other southern Asian countries are buckling under the sheer weight of imported plastic waste.
The reality 2021…
Plastic waste was still flowing into the country, brought in by recycling factories in the duty-free zone, indicating a loophole in the regulations.
“We have found that imported plastic waste of up to 150,000 tonnes was brought in in 2020, an increase of 2.69 times on the previous year.
“For this year, around 71,000 tonnes of plastic waste are imported into Thailand up until June,” Ms Penchom said…FULL Story here
The UK...
In January 2018, the UK announced a 25-year plan to set the global gold standard on eliminating plastic waste, according to environment minister Michael Gove.
The Reality 2021…The UK is under growing pressure to ban all exports of plastic waste…There are calls for the environment bill to be returned to parliament to be strengthened to tackle the global plastic waste crisis.
Australia …
Unlike other governments I couldn’t find much on outright bans it seems to be that it is happening state by state…South Australia, the Australian Capital Territory, Tasmania, and the Northern Territory, have state-wide bans on single-use plastic bags, and Queensland is set to follow in July 2018. Ministers also endorsed a target of 100 per cent of Australian packaging being recyclable, compostable or reusable by 2025, to be delivered by the Australian Packaging Covenant Organisation.
The reality 2021…it appears the recycling industry is not ready for the ban on exporting plastic waste…
But reading the report and seeing statements like unsorted waste makes me think that waste will still be exported just under a different banner and as we see above when a countries regulations have loopholes …call me cynical but it seems to me to just be words and business as usual…
Canada…
In January 2018, Canada put a stop to plastic microbeads. Although microbeads were permitted to be manufactured and imported for non-prescription drugs and certain natural health products until July 1 2018.
The reality 2021…Plastics are not uniformly regulated in Canada. While the federal government is responsible for them to some degree, include for product regulatory matters, it is the provinces, territories and municipalities that regulate many environmental protection matters, including most waste management. This results in a patchwork model of regulation, with some jurisdictions having much stricter plastic regulations than others.
New Zealand…
Associate Minister for the Environment Eugenie Sage has confirmed that single-use plastic shopping bags will be phased out in New Zealand with regulations to come into force from 1 July 2019.
The Reality 2021…New Zealand has just announced that it will phase out single-use plastics between 2022 and 2025 in an effort to promote environmental sustainability. The country will ban plastic drink stirrers, straws, and cutlery, according to the Guardian, as well as PVC and polystyrene food and drink packaging.
France…
2016 saw France become the first country to announce a total ban on plastic cups, plates, and cutlery, to be brought in from 2020.
The Reality 2021…As of this week, straws, plastic bottles, coffee cups and takeaway containers made from certain materials are banned in the EU. Items made from expanded polystyrene, specifically, are no longer allowed to be sold.
India…
India pledges to beat plastic pollution by 2022…Wow, that is fighting talk as they probably have more plastic waste than many countries worldwide. India was the host to World Environment Day 2018 and they have taken 5 steps to fast track it already…
The Reality 2021…Given the mammoth task, India faces not just with plastic but with Covid, they seem to be forging ahead…Personally, I wish them luck and hope they succeed in turning things around …Next steps …
Holland…
With effect from January 2016, free plastic bags were banned… Although alongside France they have agreed to a Plastic Pact this is being condemned by the break free from plastics movement and Hollands recycling Network as they feel it should be law and not voluntary…
The Reality 2021…Holland as a country seem to be on board and happy to make changes for the good of mother earth…
Spain…
In October 2018, Spain became the 32nd country to sign up for the UN Clean Seas campaign, which aims to ‘turn the tide on plastic.
The Reality 2021…The Spanish government has approved a bill designed to discourage the production and consumption of single-use plastics, including taxes on their production and disposal and a timetable for phasing out their use in the food and drink sector.
Finland…
Collective working in Finland received a Plastics Roadmap, which is the first step toward a new, sustainable plastic economy. Of the more than 100 proposals made, the roadmap presents a set of key actions to find solutions to challenges caused by plastics.
The Reality 2021…work is still ongoing…
The USA…
This article published in Jan 2019 shows current legislation state by state…Plastic bags and paper bags…I’m sure that you my dear readers can tell me how your state is doing and where they send your carefully sorted waste and plastic…
The Reality 2021…I always thought the USA liked to be a world leader in everything…it appears waste is the exception
Sweden…This is an addition to my 2019 post as I like their thinking…to me, it seems they discuss, think and act…it also seems that in Sweden consumers are on board and want to save the world…not just a few but the many…
Circular energy is working here…
My conclusion…
I’m worried for the future of this beautiful world and wondering where this leaves my children and grandchildren…what kind of world will WE leave for them to inhabit?
I have noticed from this assortment of countries though that it is where the people and the government are on the same page where the government are not afraid to take necessary steps but also where the people accept the changes and get on and do it… make it work…
A whole approach is what is needed and where it happens it works… all these separate regulations don’t.
Ahead of the forthcoming COP26 of which the first one was in 1995..26 years ago…For the last 26 years, the attendees of these meetings have been discussing Climate Change…According to this IPCC report which has just been published ahead of COP26 UNLESS there are immediate, rapid and large scale reductions in greenhouse gas emissions, limiting warming close to 1.5 degrees C or even 2 degrees centigrade will be beyond reach.
I for one hope that at this COP26 action will be decided and implemented forthwith no ifs and buts but ACTION!
That’s all for this week, thank you for reading and have a lovely week xx
Retired? No one told me! 