People Want Government to Do More to Keep Plastics Out of Water
A Canadian advocacy group is asking the federal government to stop plastic from polluting the water in the Great Lakes.
Environmental Defence, a group whose goal is to protect clean water and Canada's natural resources, has asked the Canadian government to speed up its plan to stop plastic pollution by 2030. The group said that each year, more than 10,000 tonnes of trash made of plastic are dumped into the Great Lakes.
The group is celebrating "Plastic Free July" and has asked people to use social media on Wednesday, July 20, to ask their MPs to ban more single-use plastics.
Michelle Woodhouse, Environmental Defence Water Programme Manager, said:
"The Great Lakes contain 84 per cent of North America’s surface water, essential for the survival of millions of people, animals and plants. The only way to save the Great Lakes from plastic pollution is to reduce plastic production altogether. We need a real plan, including stronger regulations for things like plastic pellets, which are used to manufacture plastic products and are a huge source of plastic pollution in the lakes, and further limits to the amount of single-use plastic the industry is pumping out.”
The group paid for an art piece to be put up in front of Toronto's Ripley's Aquarium to show how much plastic is still used.
Environmental Defence said that the amount of plastic pollution in the Great Lakes is now higher than in the oceans.
Karen Wirsig, Environmental Defence Plastics Programme Manager, said: "There are also currently no rules to address plastic production pellets which too often end up in the lakes. We can’t keep allowing the industry to set standards for itself."
Six single-use plastics have already been banned by the government. By the end of this year, it will be illegal for Canadian companies to import or make plastic bags, straws, stir sticks, and other items. The items won't be able to be sold after 2023, and they won't be able to leave the country after 2025.
Source: Blackburn News
