Resources

The report pulls together recent scientific data on the broad impact of plastics on climate, biodiversity, human health, the environment, and planetary stability to ‘sound the alarm’ on the pollution caused by plastics throughout their lifecycles. ‘Connecting the Dots’ makes recommendations on how to design and ensure effective, long-term and collaborative global policy which considers plastic pollution as a threat to planetary boundaries and takes into account its knock-on impacts on other environmental crises.

Oceana estimates that up to 23.5 million pounds of Amazon’s plastic packaging waste entered and polluted the world’s waterways and oceans in 2020, the equivalent of dumping a delivery van payload of plastic into the oceans every 67 minutes. The report calls on Amazon to reduce its plastic footprint by offering plastic-free packaging as an option at checkout, consistently reporting on its plastic footprint, and eliminating plastic packaging.

As discussions around plastics become more global, we are pleased to present to you our new report 'Plan the Ban' undertaken in 4 cities in India (Pune, Indore, Delhi and Nainital). It is the first of its kind, measuring the impact of removing plastics as a waste and, thereby, as a source of income for wastepicker communities.

In 2021, more than 1,000 volunteers in 19 states across India conducted brand audits to hold corporate polluters accountable for their indiscriminate use of single-use plastic packaging. Brand audits are conducted annually by members of the ‘Break Free From Plastic’ movement across the globe.

The global plastics treaty provides an important opportunity to officially discourage or ban the use of plastic credits before they become widespread. Doing so would avoid the incredible amount of regulatory oversight needs —both in the private and public sectors— to organize and manage international plastic credit markets. The collective efforts could be better spent on reducing plastic production rapidly.

Top exporters such as the United States, Germany, the UK, Japan and Australia are placing a disproportionate toxic burden on the environment and communities in importing countries. A Global Plastics Treaty can enact stricter measures on the waste trade to prevent environmental injustices.

Plastic takes up a large percentage of the waste handled by waste pickers. Consequently, they are one of the most vulnerable occupation groups that stand to be impacted by the global plastics treaty. The treaty must establish the legal frameworks required to improve working conditions for waste pickers.

Plastic contains toxic chemicals that leach into our food, water, and soil. Out of about 10,000 chemicals used as plastic additives, few have been widely studied, let alone regulated. A treaty must address plastic’s toxic burden.

Plastic is a significant contributor to climate change throughout its lifecycle. By 2050, emissions from plastic alone will take up over a third of the remaining carbon budget for a 1.5 °C target. A plastics treaty must impose legally-binding plastic reduction targets.

A transition from a plastic-reliant economy toward a circular zero waste economy requires effective mobilization and allocation of financial resources. Public and private finance have distinct and intersecting roles to play in supporting and scaling up innovations for waste prevention, redesign, alternative delivery and reuse systems as well as improving existing waste collection and recycling systems.