Plastics contain some very toxic chemicals and break down into nano-particles that end up in our bodies.
This is timely, because Tuesday marks the start of a week-long session in Ottawa of the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee on Plastic Pollution.
This is intended to take “a comprehensive approach that addresses the full life cycle of plastic, including its production, design, and disposal” and should be ready by the end of this year.According to the UN Environment Programme , on its “Our planet is choking on plastic” website, the world produces an estimated 400 million tonnes of plastic waste every year.Since the 1970s, UNEP adds, “plastic production has grown faster than that of any other material.
“The level of greenhouse gas emissions associated with the production, use and disposal of conventional fossil fuel-based plastics is forecast to grow to 19 per cent of the global carbon budget by 2040,” UNEP says. As of 2016, we were adding about 9-14 million tonnes per year, but the UNEP estimates this could double or triple to 23-37 million tonnes per year by 2040.
But all that plastic does not stay floating around in large pieces. Instead, it is broken down into tiny nano-particles, which then enter the food chain.
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