In the past 20 years, Gardiner writes, plastic production has doubled, and it will double again, perhaps triple, in the near future. Petrochemicals for plastic are, she says, “expected to be the largest single driver of oil demand in the decades to come. Obviously these oil companies can see what’s coming – they understand that that shift away from fossil fuels is a threat to their business model that has been so profitable for them.” Plastic, she says, “is a way for them to keep drilling and to keep making money. Putting their expertise and muscle into solar or wind power was not the way they wanted to go. It’s not as profitable as selling oil and gas, so they’re all in on the current model, and plastic is a way to perpetuate it. Which is why it is, I guess, even more catastrophic. Because if it’s enabling the industry to keep drilling, to keep selling oil and gas, that is a huge threat to the climate.”
The extraction and transport of fossil fuels, and manufacturing and disposal of plastics, all create carbon emissions. According to the UN, in 2019, plastics generated 1.8bn tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions – 3.4% of total global emissions.
Legislate to make the manufacturer responsible for cleanup of their products and packaging, particularly for things that are not easily recyclable. End this nonsense of making the consumer responsible for the cleanup.
Could also implement deposits on plastic packaging. That clamshell your mouse came in? Charge $1 that is refunded once the package is turned into a recycler. If it works for aluminum cans in many places it can work for plastic. Also why the fuck is the deposit on aluminum not a global thing by now? Aluminum is so easy to recycle now and can be done infinite times.
For real though, why do we use plastic for packaging when aluminum is better? I would completely buy product in an aluminum clamshell.
It’s just one of the options they would switch to if it’s more costly for them to use plastic … or even nothing at all. There’s so many things that wouldn’t be plastic if the onus was on the manufacturer to make provision for cleaning up the waste associated with their product.
