Planet vs Plastics: Which countries top the throwaway ranking?

Well, that would be the US and the UK, according to a 2020 Forbes report which said that "residents of the U.S. and the U.K. produce more plastic waste per person than any other nation, with Americans generating an average of 105kg (231lbs) of plastic per year. The British are close behind, throwing away almost 99kg (218lbs) annually". The UK arm of environmental organisation Greenpeace, which runs an annual Big Plastic Count in schools and households, dumps the issue firmly on the government's doorstep with this campaign. The call to action also includes supermarkets and big companies, and urges us to sign a petition urging the government to take decisive action. Results from The Big Plastic Count 2024 revealed that "UK households throw away an estimated 1.7 billion pieces of plastic weekly (60 pieces per household per week), equivalent to 90 billion a year. Snack packaging (699,932 pieces) and fruit and veg packaging (697,085 pieces) emerged as the most commonly counted plastic items. Over half (58%) of the pieces of plastic packaging thrown away are being incinerated – up 12% from 46% in 2022. Only 17% was recycled in the UK, followed by waste exports (14%) and landfill (11%)". Regarding incineration, Greenpeace points out that the "ramifications of our plastic consumption extend beyond environmental concerns. Incinerating plastic not only exacerbates climate change and can release more carbon dioxide per tonne than burning coal, but it is also incompatible with the government’s commitment to drastically reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 and poses health risks to local communities, often in economically disadvantaged areas. With 57 incinerators in operation across the UK, and 18 new incinerators in construction, urgent measures are necessary to address this escalating crisis". Recycling will never be able to catch up with the volume of plastics being produced, says Greenpeace. So there's a pressing need for supermarketsand policy makers to embrace re-use and re-fill schemes and the reduction of unnecessary plastic packaging. The Big Plastic Count 2024 comes ahead of the fourth Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee (INC4) meeting for a Global Plastics Treaty, which will be held in Ottawa, Canada, this month. Recent polling from Greenpeace International found that 74% of UK residents agree that to stop plastic pollution, we need to cut plastic production. The polling found that 69% of UK residents support the Global Plastics Treaty agreeing a reduction in plastic production, in order to stop biodiversity loss and limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius. What do you think of the campaign? Does it make it too easy to blame external factors rather than keep us aware of our individual plastic waste habits, or is it a useful next step in the environmental protection arena? The theme for World Earth Day (April 22) 2024 is Planet vs Plastics.

Keywords: Greenpeace Big Plastic Count 2024, Planet vs Plastics, environment, plastic waste, plastics, Everyday Plastic