Reflections on Plastic and the news that the "EU Commission plans ban on plastic waste":
http://www.dw.com/en/eu-commission-plans-ban-on-plastic-waste/a-43949554
"If we continue as we are now, by the year 2050 there will be more plastic in the oceans than fish. Already now we are fishing more plastic waste than fish. There is really an urgent need for profound change" - Frans @TimmermansEU - Vice-President of the EU Commission
Today, the EU has officially acknowledged that plastic waste is a global environmental catastrophe of epic proportions. Why? To grasp the full extent of the plastic problem is hard, but here some facts: "More than 8m tons of plastic are dumped in our oceans every year"
Beyond any singular facts on why plastic is bad, this perhaps is the most shocking: "The Great Pacific garbage patch" is a massive island of plastic, floating between California & Hawai. It is now 3 times the size of France and growing rapidly: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Pacific_garbage_patch
The EU Commission proposed new EU-wide rules this Monday, aimed at reducing plastic pollution in cities & oceans by banning several plastic products. They are the first major economic zone to signal a move towards "innovative alternatives" which "could create new jobs". Sane!
While the EU plastic regulations are ambitious in the global context - critics rightfully are saying much strong action is required to prevent a *total collapse* of global marine life & connect food chains. A scenario scientists see as increasingly likely:
https://www.newsecuritybeat.org/2017/02/ocean-fish-stocks-on-verge-collapse-irin-report/
