EU proposes ban on plastic straws, cutlery- the EU committed to at the 2017 Our Ocean conference

[karynnj]

Last edited Tue May 29, 2018, 11:33 AM - Edit history (1)

In Late breaking News, there is a thread (https://www.democraticunderground.com/10142069482 ) on this EU action. While I can not say it is definitely connected to EU commitments made at their Our Oceans conference in Malta last year ( http://ourocean2017.org/ ), it is an action that may have benefited from the activism urged there. Kerry, who started the Our Oceans conferences in 2014, is included in the highlights video.

Many of the talks did deal with plastic in the ocean and the danger it represents and they had a campaign that traveled to many European cities in 2017 with an exhibit that spelled out the problem - https://ourocean2017.org/campaigns/tackling-plastic-pollution-ocean. The US embassy put out this press release as the exhibit came to Malta - note this paragraph:

Plastic pollution is a serious threat to our oceans, putting fragile ecosystems, marine life, economic livelihoods, and human health at risk. Every year ten million tons of plastic are discharged into the ocean, where they can remain for up to 400 years.

The exhibition is the result of a partnership between the United States, European Commission, the National Aquarium of Denmark (Den Blå Planet), and NGO Plastic Change. Through this partnership, a public education exhibit first shown in Copenhagen last year traveled to Estonia and Portugal, prior to its arrival in Malta. It will then travel to Italy. The exhibition highlights U.S. and EU leadership in tackling marine litter.

The fight against plastic pollution is one of four main strands of the 2017 Our Ocean conference, hosted by the European Union in Malta on October 5 to 6, 2017. High-level ocean champions from around the world will gather under the motto ‘Our Ocean – an Ocean for Life’ to underscore the importance of ocean protection and sustainability. Initiated by the United States in 2014, the first three Our Ocean conferences have resulted in more than 850 billion euros in commitments to ocean projects worldwide.

But everybody can take simple steps to prevent plastic from ending up in the sea. “An Ocean Free of Plastic” raises awareness about plastics pollution, describes the impacts of micro-plastics on the ocean environment, and provides examples of actions individuals can take at home.

https://mt.usembassy.gov/u-s-eu-partners-tackling-plastic-pollution-ocean/

What seems obvious is that this exhibit was a result of the 2016 Our Oceans conference. The Our Oceans conference was initiated by John Kerry, when he was Secretary of State - and he and the US hosted the first and third conference. While it got relatively little coverage in 2014 and 2016, this is part of his legacy that this international conference continues. It was interesting that the US did have at least a small delegation to Malta.

The LBN thread is about a potential EU ban which is a big deal. While the EU deserves all the credit for doing this, I did think it fair to put them here because the Our Oceans conference DID put ocean pollution on the international agenda more prominently than it ever had been. I would bet that Kerry is happy that such actions are being taken.

I found the website for Our Oceans 2018 that will be in Bali. Looking under the 2017 commitments, this IS the fruition of one of the goals (though not exactly as written) under marine pollution.

As part of its upcoming plastics strategy, the European Union announced draft measures to reduce the leakage of plastics into the environment by the end of 2017.

The European Union announced draft measures in 2017 to reduce the discharges of ship-generated waste and cargo residues into the sea.

The European Commission announced that it will phase out by end 2017 all single-use plastic cups in water fountains and vending machines in all its buildings and meetings. It also committed to report on all its efforts towards a further reduction of the use of other single-use plastic items in all its building and events at the occasion of the 2018 Our Ocean Conference. Measures to achieve this will include improving its green public procurement, reducing single-use plastics in canteens and cafeterias, promoting use of tap water, launching a wider awareness raising campaign for staff on waste reduction, sorting and recycling and greening Commission events.

http://ourocean2018.org/?l=our-ocean-commitmentsnew