The federal government recently took a step towards reducing plastic pollution, but the plastics lobby is already working to undermine it.
The government announced it will add plastics to the Toxic Substance List under the Canadian Environmental Protection Act (CEPA), and released a list of single-use plastic items it's considering banning, specifically: grocery bags, straws, cutlery, six-pack rings, some takeout containers, and stir sticks.
It's a start, but it's not enough. Already, the plastics industry is challenging the validity of the CEPA-listing and is lobbying to block the proposed ban on problematic single-use plastic items..
We can't let our environment be controlled by special interests. Tell the Minister that we need to transition to a circular economy, where reduction, reuse, and repair are prioritized, and problematic single-use plastics are banned.
Tell Minister Wilkinson we're counting on him to move Canada in the right direction.
Dear Minister Wilkinson,
Thank you for your continued commitment to ending plastic pollution.
I support a ban on single-use plastics items, including straws, cutlery, takeout containers, six-pack rings, grocery bags, and coffee stirrers. But banning these six items isn't a silver bullet solution to the plastic pollution crisis. As you said in your press conference on October 7, 2020 "the ban is [just] six items...the vast majority of plastic items will remain".
The federal government must adopt a comprehensive regulatory framework that transitions Canada to a low-carbon, toxic-free, circular economy — an economy where plastics are reused and repurposed many times over, before being recycled, and never end up in landfills, incinerators or the environment.
The plastics pollution crisis isn't just because of improper waste management. It stems from the overuse and overproduction of unnecessary plastics. The exponential growth in plastics production needs to cease.
I urge you to immediately:
- Finalize and implement a ban on single-use plastic items, including the six items listed in the proposed integrated management approach to plastic products (straws, cutlery, takeout containers, coffee stirrers, six-pack rings, and grocery bags), as well as disposable plastic dishware (including hot/cold drink cups with plastic lining), cotton swabs, balloon sticks, oxo-degradable plastics, all forms of polystyrene and PVC food containers, and multi-layered plastics;
- Set production, use, and sale reduction targets for plastics not covered by the ban;
- Require producers and retailers to meet minimum collection, recycling, and recycled content targets for plastic items not covered by the ban; and,
- Introduce legally binding targets for refillable beverage containers to encourage the transition away from single-use plastic bottles.
Canadians generate too much plastic waste, but you have the power to change this, and set Canada on the right path. There's no time to waste.
[Your comment here]
Sincerely,
[Your name here]
