Cotton buds, plastic drinking straws and other single-use plastics could be banned from sale in England next year in the next phase of the campaign to try to halt the pollution of the world’s rivers and oceans.
Theresa May hopes to use the announcement to encourage the Commonwealth heads of government to join the fight as the meeting opens formally on Thursday.
“The Commonwealth is a unique organisation with a huge diversity of wildlife, and environments – so it is vital we act now,” the prime minister will say, urging all Commonwealth countries to participate.
Plastics and our throwaway society
Why is plastic being demonised?
Since the 1950s, 8.3bn tonnes of plastic has been produced. Plastic is seen as a versatile, indispensable product, but the environmental impact is becoming more stark. Plastic is now so pervasive that recycling systems cannot keep up and the leakage into the environment is such that by 2050 plastic in the ocean will outweigh fish. Last year scientists found plastic fibres in tap water, and plastic has been found in the stomachs of sea creatures in the deepest part of the ocean.
Most plastic waste ends up in landfill sites or leaks into the natural environment, where it is causing huge damage to eco-systems on land and sea, creating near permanent contamination. According to academics in the United States, by 2015, of all the plastic waste generated since the 1950s, only 9% has been recycled, with 12% incinerated and 79% accumulated in landfill sites or the environment.
Why are the supermarkets under fire?
Producers of plastic include retailers, drinks companies and supermarkets. The Guardian revealed that supermarkets create more than half of the plastic waste in the household stream in the UK. But they refuse to reveal how much they put on to the streets and how much they pay towards recycling it. Supermarkets are under pressure to reduce their plastic packaging and campaigners argue they have the power to turn off the tap. Much of the packaging they sell to consumers is not recyclable: plastic film, black plastic trays, sleeves on drinks bottles and some coloured plastic. The Recycling Association and other experts believe supermarkets could do much more to make packaging 100% recyclable and reduce the use of plastic.
Who pays to clean up the waste?
The taxpayer, overwhelmingly. Producers and retailers pay the lowest towards recycling and dealing with their waste in Europe. In other countries, the “polluter” is forced to pay much more. In France, a sliding system of charges means those who put more non- recyclable material on the market pay more.
What can shoppers do to help?
Supermarkets are under pressure, not least from the prime minister, to create plastic-free aisles. A growing number of zero-waste shops are springing up and consumers are being encouraged to ask for products to be sold without plastic.
Sandra Laville
Cotton buds, often flushed down the lavatory, are one of the most serious sources of marine pollution. They are small enough to be eaten by birds and marine life.
Altogether it is estimated that there are 150m tonnes of plastic in the world’s oceans, and over 100,000 sea mammals die from eating or getting tangled up in plastic waste.
Plastic microbeads have already been banned, and the introduction of the 5p plastic bag charge in England has led to a dramatic fall in their use: 9bn fewer bags have been distributed, Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) figures show.
Michael Gove, the Defra secretary, called single-use plastics a scourge. “It is only through government, business and the public working together and the public working together that we will protect our environment for the next generation,” he said.
A consultation will start later in 2018, and a ban could be enforced as early as next year.
Scotland has a head start on England: the Scottish government announced a consultation on plans to ban the manufacture and sale of plastic-stemmed cotton buds in January. Campaigners said it would cut the country’s marine plastic pollution by half.
Other work, such as the Treasury’s research into the impact of a levy on disposable coffee cups and a deposit return scheme on plastic bottles, is also under way in a bid to wean Britons off their polluting habits.
But sources say behaviour will not be changed through regulation and compulsion. Ministers are keen that the public should be better informed about plastics that are reusable and recyclable, and want the process to be incremental and well supported, as the plastics bag levy was when it was finally introduced.
How do coffee chains reward customers with reusable cups?
Starbucks offers a 25p discount for customers who bring in a reusable mug or tumbler. Its own costs £1.
The largest chain, Costa, will take 25p off for any reusable cup for hot and cold barista-served drinks (excluding stores in Northern Ireland and concessions stands in petrol stations). Its own reusable cups cost £3.
Pret a Manger doubled its discount to 50p on all hot drinks bought by customers with reusable cups, and it is planning to launch its own reusable cup later in the year.
Bakery chain Paul has recently more than doubled its reusable cup discount to 50p for customers ordering any hot drink. Its own reusable mug costs £3.50.
Greggs will refill any reusable cups and give those customers a 20p discount. Its own reusable cups cost £2.
A further incentive to avoid the use of plastics is the impact that reduced demand for the oil-based material would have on the fossil fuel industry. BP announced recently that it would “dent” demand.
There is evidence that increasingly prosperous countries of the global south are beginning to react to environmental damage and pollution. Earlier this year, China cracked down on imports of plastic rubbish, revealing how much the UK relied on sending its waste offshore.
In India, Delhi banned all forms of disposable plastic more than a year ago after complaints about the illegal mass burning of plastic and other waste at local rubbish dumps, and the air pollution it caused. The sites were supposed to operate as waste-to-energy plants.
The evidence of the damage that plastics do not just to wildlife and the food chain but to some of the world’s most beautiful places is now widely reported. The government has committed £61.4m to its latest initiative, some of which will be used for research and to help Commonwealth countries develop ways of stopping plastic waste entering oceans.
