24/7 Space News
TECH SPACE
Recycling plastic not enough, warns UN environment chief
Reuters Events SMR and Advanced Reactor 2025
Recycling plastic not enough, warns UN environment chief
By Am�lie BOTTOLLIER-DEPOIS
United Nations, United States (AFP) Sept 23, 2023

With the production of plastic on the rise worldwide and creating ever more pollution, the UN environment chief warned that humanity cannot just recycle its way out of the mess, and she called for a total rethink about the way we use plastics.

"There are different sort of onramps to the highway to solutions. But I think everybody recognizes that the status quo is just not an option," said Inger Andersen, director of the UN Environment Program, in an interview Thursday with AFP on the sidelines of the General Assembly in New York.

Andersen was talking two weeks after the publication of the first draft of a future international treaty on plastic pollution, which is expected to be finalized by the end of 2024.

It reflects the wide range of ambitions of the 175 countries involved, notably the gap between those who argue for a reduction in the production of raw polymers and those who insist on reuse and recycling.

First, Andersen said the aim was to get rid of as many single-use plastics as possible, "eliminating what's frankly not necessary: that thing that is wrapped in plastic that's completely mindless, that is maybe even wrapped by nature itself," like an orange or a banana.

Then, "there is thinking about the product itself. Does the product need to be liquid? Can we rethink the product... can it be powder, can it be compressed, can it be concentrated?" she said, saying that when entering a supermarket, she goes straight to the soap aisle to see if solid versions are available.

"We also have to reduce the overall supply of new raw polymer," she said, noting that this was one option in the draft text of the treaty.

- Oceans a 'collective heritage' -

For sure, "we have to recycle as much as we can. But as we look at it now, plastic uses is increasing," Andersen told AFP.

"So what is clear is that we cannot recycle our way out of this mess."

Annual production of plastics has more than doubled in the past 20 years, to reach 460 million tons. It could triple by 2060 if nothing changes.

However, only nine percent is recycled. Plastic waste of all sizes is found today at the bottom of the oceans, in the stomachs of birds and on the tops of mountains, while microplastics have been detected in blood, breast milk and placentas.

"If we continue to pump into the economy all this new raw polymer, there is no way that we will stop the plastic flow into the oceans," she said.

And the health of the oceans is crucial for the future of humanity.

The future treaty on plastic pollution would complement the global arsenal to protect the oceans, including the new historic treaty to protect the high seas signed this week by some 70 countries.

"The fact that we're going to move forward and protect that piece of the ocean that is beyond national boundaries is mind-blowingly important," Andersen said.

"And something that I'm just very, very happy about. And the whole world should be because this is our common heritage."

Related Links
Space Technology News - Applications and Research

Subscribe Free To Our Daily Newsletters
Tweet

RELATED CONTENT
The following news reports may link to other Space Media Network websites.
TECH SPACE
Gold and mercury, not books, for Venezuela's child miners
El Callao, Venezuela (AFP) Sept 20, 2023
At 10 years old, Martin cannot read, but he is an old hand at detecting traces of the gold he and his young cousins dig for at an open-pit mine in southeastern Venezuela. In the town of El Callao, extracting gold from soil starts as a kid's game, but soon becomes a full-time job that human rights activists slam as dangerous exploitation. Small and agile, the children's size helps them shimmy into narrow wells to hack out muddy earth, hoping it will contain gold - which has become ever more prec ... read more

TECH SPACE
Two Russians, American reach space station

Rockets and Porsches: rich Russians flock to Baikonur spaceport

Soyuz hatch opens, Expedition 69 expands to 10 crewmates

NASA joins the still controversial search for UFOs

TECH SPACE
Musk biography describes troubled tycoon driven by demons

Marcus Wandt will fly to International Space Station on third Axiom Space mission

SpaceX launches 22 Starlink satellites in 65th mission of 2023

Rocket Lab signs deal with Leidos to launch 4 HASTE missions

TECH SPACE
Dusty Skies in the Cloudy Season: Sols 3950-3952

Sols 3948-3949: A Rocky Road, or Two!

Another Martian Weekend" Sols 3943-3945

Sols 3936-3939: Double the Fun

TECH SPACE
Tianzhou 5 spacecraft burns up on Earth reentry

Crew of Shenzhou XV mission honored for six-month space odyssey

China solicits names for manned lunar exploration vehicles

From rice to quantum gas: China's targets pioneering space research

TECH SPACE
Intelsat Inflight Connectivity expanded to all Airbus aircraft

Successful entry into service of Eutelsat Hotbird 13F and 13G satellites

Sidus Space announces 180-Day extension on NASDAQ minimum pricing

Intelsat Adds European Capacity with Telespazio's Fucino Space Centre in Italy

TECH SPACE
Every Gram Counts: SCHOTT Launches Lightweight Microelectronic Packages for Aerospace

Gold and mercury, not books, for Venezuela's child miners

Recycling plastic not enough, warns UN environment chief

AWS ties up with ISRO and IN-SPACe to advance India's space capabilities with cloud technologies

TECH SPACE
On the road to spotting alien life

Alleged bodies of 'non-human beings' shown in Mexican Congress

Webb discovers methane, carbon dioxide in atmosphere of K2-18 b

Scientists detect and validate the longest-period exoplanet found with TESS

TECH SPACE
Possible existence of Earth-like planet predicted in Outskirts of Solar System

SwRI will lead Hubble, Webb observations of Io, Jupiter's volcanic moon

In the service of planetary science, astrophysics and heliophysics

Mysterious Neptune dark spot detected from Earth for the first time

Subscribe Free To Our Daily Newsletters




The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2024 - Space Media Network. All websites are published in Australia and are solely subject to Australian law and governed by Fair Use principals for news reporting and research purposes. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA news reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. All articles labeled "by Staff Writers" include reports supplied to Space Media Network by industry news wires, PR agencies, corporate press officers and the like. Such articles are individually curated and edited by Space Media Network staff on the basis of the report's information value to our industry and professional readership. Advertising does not imply endorsement, agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) Statement Our advertisers use various cookies and the like to deliver the best ad banner available at one time. All network advertising suppliers have GDPR policies (Legitimate Interest) that conform with EU regulations for data collection. By using our websites you consent to cookie based advertising. If you do not agree with this then you must stop using the websites from May 25, 2018. Privacy Statement. Additional information can be found here at About Us.