“Winter Is Coming: Plastic Has to Go.” New Report by #breakfreefromplastic and CIEL
As the EU faces a looming gas shortage, EU countries are looking to consumers to shoulder the brunt of reductions and are pursuing deals to secure new fossil fuel supplies. At the same time, policymakers are leaving the plastics and petrochemicals sector untouched. A new report from #breakfreefromplastic and the Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL) investigates the European market for plastics and petrochemicals, arguing that the EU can advance energy security by making cuts to these energy-intensive industries.
China Zero Waste Alliance 2018 annual meeting in Shenzhen
China Zero Waste Alliance Celebrates 10 Years of Advocacy
As a consumer, you’re probably aware that most of the products you use daily are manufactured in China. However, you may be unaware that China is also the world’s largest producer of plastic. In 2017, China announced an unprecedented ban on the import of most plastic waste, resulting in
a sharp decline in global plastic waste trade flow. China Zero Waste Alliance (CZWA), and others, played an invaluable role in promoting government legislation. Last year, the CZWA collaborated with 129 community-based groups and 685 residential compounds to events that drew 40,000 residents and reduced 99,903 kilos of plastic waste at the community level. Congratulations to CZWA on ten years of successful advocacy work!
Brand audit data forms at a recent event in the Philippines.
Deadline to Submit 2022 Brand Audit Data Is TOMORROW
Did you take part in a brand audit this year? Don’t forget to send in your data! For the 2022 global Brand Audit, the deadline to submit your data is September 30, 2022. Any data received late will not be included in this year’s annual report.
On Tuesday, October 4th, the Global Alliance for Incinerator Alternatives (GAIA) will release their new report, Zero Waste to Zero Emissions: How Reducing Waste is a Climate Gamechanger. This report provides the clearest and most comprehensive evidence to date of how better waste management is critical to the climate fight, while building resilience, creating jobs, and promoting
thriving local economies. Join GAIA for one of their launch events on October 4th to learn more!
Session 1 (Africa, Asia Pacific, Europe) - October 4th at 9:00am CEST / 3:00pm PHT
Session 2 (Latin America and the Caribbean, United States and Canada) - October 4th at 9:00am PST / 12:00pm EST with simultaneous translation into Spanish. La segunda sesión tendrá traducción en vivo al español.
#breakfreefromplastic Members and Allies Call For Plastic Reduction at 7IMDC
#breakfreefromplastic members held a demonstration at the 7th International Marine Debris Conference (7IMDC) where academe, civil society, and other stakeholders gathered in Busan, South Korea to discuss the latest science and
explore solutions to plastic pollution. Holding banners and placards, members called for real solutions rooted in plastic reduction.
“With governments calling for a legally-binding plastics treaty and more organizations like Ocean Conservancy shifting away from false solutions, it is a high time for businesses —from petrochemical companies to fast-moving consumer goods corporations — to join this revolution by reducing their plastic footprint. Reduction means putting a cap on plastic production and not misleading everyone with plastic offsets and silver-bullet fixes,” said Miko Aliño, Break Free From Plastic Project Coordinator for Sachets.
Exposing the Truth About So-Called “Chemical Recycling”
Brightmark Energy in the U.S. is one of the companies pushing for so-called “chemical recycling” as a magical solution to the plastic pollution crisis. Yet, after two years, Brightmark Energy has yet to get its flagship factory up and running.
This unproven facility is a classic example of the industry using “chemical recycling” as a placeholder for pyrolysis and gasification technologies, which are fancy
terms for burning plastic feedstocks to create diesel fuels or synthetic gas (“syngas”).
Let’s be clear: This is not recycling. Even if the Brightmark facility ever comes online, what it claims to do is not “recycling” by definition. It is greenwashing.
