{"id":16076,"date":"2021-04-08T07:12:49","date_gmt":"2021-04-07T19:12:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/aotearoa\/?p=16076"},"modified":"2024-07-12T11:51:02","modified_gmt":"2024-07-11T23:51:02","slug":"plastic-pollution-climate-health-social-justice-issue","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/aotearoa\/story\/plastic-pollution-climate-health-social-justice-issue\/","title":{"rendered":"Plastic pollution is a climate, health and social justice issue"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>Achieving systems change requires confronting the entire system.<\/p>\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"683\" src=\"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-aotearoa-stateless\/2020\/07\/b7ccdc97-gp0stsj56_medium_res-1024x683.jpg\" title=\"A Greenpeace diver holds a banner reading &quot;Coca-Cola is this yours?&quot; and a Coca-Cola bottle found adrift in the garbage patch.\" alt=\"A Greenpeace diver holds a banner reading &quot;Coca-Cola is this yours?&quot; and a Coca-Cola bottle found adrift in the garbage patch.  The crew of the Greenpeace ship MY Arctic Sunrise voyage into the Great Pacific Garbage Patch document plastics and other marine debris. The Great Pacific Garbage Patch is a soupy mix of plastics and microplastics, now twice the size of Texas, in the middle of the North Pacific Ocean.\" class=\"wp-image-14025\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-aotearoa-stateless\/2020\/07\/b7ccdc97-gp0stsj56_medium_res-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-aotearoa-stateless\/2020\/07\/b7ccdc97-gp0stsj56_medium_res-600x400.jpg 600w, https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-aotearoa-stateless\/2020\/07\/b7ccdc97-gp0stsj56_medium_res-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-aotearoa-stateless\/2020\/07\/b7ccdc97-gp0stsj56_medium_res-510x340.jpg 510w, https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-aotearoa-stateless\/2020\/07\/b7ccdc97-gp0stsj56_medium_res.jpg 1199w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption>A Greenpeace diver holds a banner reading &#8220;Coca-Cola is this yours?&#8221; and a Coca-Cola bottle found adrift in the garbage patch. \n\nThe crew of the Greenpeace ship MY Arctic Sunrise voyage into the Great Pacific Garbage Patch document plastics and other marine debris. The Great Pacific Garbage Patch is a soupy mix of plastics and microplastics, now twice the size of Texas, in the middle of the North Pacific Ocean.<\/figcaption><figcaption><div class=\"credit icon-left\"> \u00a9 Justin Hofman \/ Greenpeace<\/div><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>What\u2019s happening<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n<p>Companies like&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.newplasticseconomy.org\/assets\/doc\/Global-Commitment-2020-Progress-Report.pdf\">Coke, Pepsi and Nestle rely on single-use plastic<\/a>, which is not only polluting the entire planet with waste, but helping to prop up the oil and gas sector and fueling climate change.<\/p>\n\n<p>For the fossil fuel industry, plastic represents a&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/CM9RuJUoBL0\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">desperate lifeline<\/a>. The same companies responsible for overheating the climate, including ExxonMobil, Shell, Ineos, and Chevron Phillips, are also responsible for producing single-use plastic for big brands.<\/p>\n\n<p>Unfortunately, the answer from the consumer goods sector has been to acknowledge the severity of the issue, dial up the PR machine, run a few reuse pilots and double-down on business as usual: more single-use plastic for generations to come. And, in working to preserve their single-use business model, the consumer goods sector finds itself increasingly aligned with a longtime and troubling ally at the heart of our&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/aotearoa\/tag\/climate\/\">climate crisis<\/a>&nbsp;\u2013 the fossil fuel industry.<\/p>\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-international-stateless\/2021\/04\/d922a0e1-gp1suq87-1024x609.jpg\" alt=\"Ship Channel and Oil Facilities in Texas. \u00a9 Aaron Sprecher \/ Greenpeace\" class=\"wp-image-47147\" title=\"Ship Channel and Oil Facilities in Texas. \u00a9 Aaron Sprecher \/ Greenpeace\"\/><figcaption>Ineos and Braskem oil facilities in La Porte, Texas. As upstream profits in oil and gas production have declined, the fossil fuel industry has increasingly invested in petrochemical divisions as a potential bright spot, citing low price ethane feedstocks generated from the US fracking boom and increased demand for single-use plastics in the consumer goods sector. \u00a9 Aaron Sprecher \/ Greenpeace<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Why it matters<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n<p>We are being lied to. <\/p>\n\n<p>Coke and other consumer goods companies claim to be tackling plastic pollution but they are working alongside the fossil fuel industry to perpetuate the big lie: that we can&nbsp;<a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/CLc9xIdsFeE\/\" target=\"_blank\">recycle our way out of the plastic crisis<\/a>.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n<p>Only two percent of the plastic waste ever created is recycled in any circular sense of the word. Despite this abysmal track record, the unfounded promise of recycling allows consumer goods brands to justify&nbsp;wrapping their products in plastic packaging&nbsp;used for seconds while polluting for hundreds of years.<\/p>\n\n<p>Plastic is not just an ocean and waste problem, it is also a climate, health and&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/aotearoa\/story\/what-is-fossil-capital-and-how-does-it-fuel-social-injustice\/\">social justice problem<\/a>. 99% of plastic is made from fossil fuels, like fracked gas and oil, and it contributes to climate change throughout its lifecycle. Plastic is toxic \u2013&nbsp;socially and environmentally&nbsp;\u2013 from the moment production begins.<\/p>\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>What we\u2019re doing about it<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n<p>We are disrupting their polluting business model.<\/p>\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"619\" src=\"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-aotearoa-stateless\/2019\/11\/991a5d24-signal-attachment-2019-11-24-062443-1024x619.jpg\" alt=\"Around 30 people occupied OMV's oil rig support vessel in Timaru, New Zealand\" class=\"wp-image-7262\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-aotearoa-stateless\/2019\/11\/991a5d24-signal-attachment-2019-11-24-062443-1024x619.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-aotearoa-stateless\/2019\/11\/991a5d24-signal-attachment-2019-11-24-062443-600x363.jpg 600w, https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-aotearoa-stateless\/2019\/11\/991a5d24-signal-attachment-2019-11-24-062443-768x464.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-aotearoa-stateless\/2019\/11\/991a5d24-signal-attachment-2019-11-24-062443-510x308.jpg 510w, https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-aotearoa-stateless\/2019\/11\/991a5d24-signal-attachment-2019-11-24-062443.jpg 1440w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption>Around 30 people occupied OMV&#8217;s oil rig support vessel in Timaru, New Zealand<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n<p>Millions of people across the globe are&nbsp;<a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/CNU98TNonnc\/\" target=\"_blank\">taking action against corporations like Coca-Cola, PepsiCo and Nestle<\/a>&nbsp;to demand they end their reliance on single use-plastics \u2013&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/breakfreefromplastic\">signing petitions<\/a>, engaging local businesses,<a href=\"https:\/\/petition.act.greenpeace.org.nz\/oceans-plasticplan\">&nbsp;lobbying governments<\/a>, pressuring investors and working in their communities to build a future based on reuse.<br><br>This surging movement is being felt in corporate boardrooms and government halls across the globe.&nbsp; There is international consensus that we must act now.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>What Greenpeace thinks about this<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n<p>As Abigail Aguilar, plastics campaign regional coordinator, Greenpeace Southeast Asia, said:<\/p>\n\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s not surprising that global brand audits have found the same big multinationals to be the world\u2019s top plastic polluters for&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.breakfreefromplastic.org\/sliders\/ba-2020\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">three years in a row<\/a>. These companies claim to be addressing the plastic crisis yet they continue to invest in false solutions while partnering with oil companies to produce even more plastic. To stop this mess and combat climate change, big brands must end their addiction to single-use plastic packaging and move away from fossil fuels.\u201d<\/p>\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-international-stateless\/2019\/03\/f0f0dfc7-gp0stt27e-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"Plastic Waste Dump in Dumaguete, Philippines. \u00a9 Greenpeace\" class=\"wp-image-21292\" title=\"Plastic Waste Dump in Dumaguete, Philippines. \u00a9 Greenpeace\"\/><figcaption>Merci Ferrer walks on a dumpsite in Dumaguete City, Philippines. \u00a9 Greenpeace<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>What needs to happen now<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n<p>Coca-Cola, Nestl\u00e9 and PepsiCo have the power to make a real difference. To reduce their plastic footprint and combat the climate crisis, they need to end their reliance on single-use plastic packaging, move away from fossil fuels and support strong government regulation.<\/p>\n\n<p><strong>When people speak out, big brands listen.<\/strong>&nbsp;If enough people&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/breakfreefromplastic\">call on these companies to make changes<\/a>, they can help put an&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/breakfreefromplastic\">end to the plastic pollution crisis<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n<p><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/petition.act.greenpeace.org.nz\/plastics-choke\">Demand that these giant companies reduce their plastic footprint at the source and invest in refill and reuse now<\/a>.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n<p><em>Graham Forbes is the Global Plastic Project Lead at Greenpeace USA<\/em><\/p>\n\t\t\t<section\n\t\t\tclass=\"boxout post-15237 \"\n\t\t\t\n\t\t>\n\t\t\t<a\n\t\t\t\tdata-ga-category=\"Take Action Boxout\"\n\t\t\t\tdata-ga-action=\"Image\"\n\t\t\t\tdata-ga-label=\"n\/a\"\n\t\t\t\tclass=\"cover-card-overlay\"\n\t\t\t\thref=\"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/aotearoa\/petition\/petition-ban-single-use-plastic-bottles\/\" \n\t\t\t><\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img\n\t\t\t\t\t\tsrc=\"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-aotearoa-stateless\/f6b777d6-cb8d-4144-82a2-456b2bc8e97a-1024x581.jpg\"\n\t\t\t\t\t\tsrcset=\"\"\n\t\t\t\t\t\tsizes=\"(min-width: 1000px) 358px, (min-width: 780px) 313px, 88px\"\n\t\t\t\t\t\talt=\"\" title=\"\"\n\t\t\t\t\/>\n            \t\t\t<div class=\"boxout-content\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a\n\t\t\t\t\t\tclass=\"boxout-heading medium\"\n\t\t\t\t\t\tdata-ga-category=\"Take Action Boxout\"\n\t\t\t\t\t\tdata-ga-action=\"Title\"\n\t\t\t\t\t\tdata-ga-label=\"n\/a\"\n\t\t\t\t\t\thref=\"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/aotearoa\/petition\/petition-ban-single-use-plastic-bottles\/\"\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t>\n\t\t\t\t\t\tPETITION: Ban Single-use Plastic Bottles\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"boxout-excerpt\">Call on the NZ Government to ban unnecessary single-use plastic bottles* in NZ, and to incentivise reusable and refillable alternatives.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t                                    <a\n                        class=\"btn btn-primary\"\n                        data-ga-category=\"Take Action Boxout\"\n                        data-ga-action=\"Call to Action\"\n                        data-ga-label=\"n\/a\"\n                        href=\"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/aotearoa\/petition\/petition-ban-single-use-plastic-bottles\/\"\n                        \n                    >\n                        Take Action\n                    <\/a>\n                \t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/section>\n\t","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Achieving systems change requires confronting the entire system.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":14025,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_planet4_optimize_post_is_variant":false,"_planet4_optimize_experiment_name":"","_planet4_optimize_variant_name":"","ep_exclude_from_search":false,"p4_og_title":"Plastic pollution is a climate, health and social justice issue -","p4_og_description":"","p4_og_image":"","p4_og_image_id":"","p4_seo_canonical_url":"","p4_campaign_name":"not set","p4_local_project":"not set","p4_basket_name":"not set","p4_department":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[27],"p4-page-type":[6],"class_list":["post-16076","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-greenpeace","tag-plastics","p4-page-type-story"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v26.8 (Yoast SEO v26.8) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ 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