McKenna confident of G7 plastics breakthrough

Environment Minister Catherine McKenna says the plastics charter she is negotiating with other G7 nations ahead of next month’s leaders’ summit in Quebec could be billed as a Paris- type agreement for ocean garbage.

McKenna tells The Canadian Press the talks are tough, but going well — and she’s confident Prime Minister Justin Trudeau will have something solid to present alongside the other leaders in Charlevoix, Que., in June.

The plastics charter is to be a centrepiece element of the summit, where climate, the environment and oceans are themes Trudeau chose for Canada’s turn as the presidency of the G7 group of nations.

McKenna says it will focus on a high- level policy approach that includes targets for reducing the amount of garbage in the world’s oceans, asks individual nations to come up with domestic plans to meet those targets, works with industry to develop less harmful products and funds developing nations to create better waste disposal systems to keep plastics from ending up in the water.

She says it will aim to reduce the amount of garbage in the world’s oceans amd ask individual nations for domestic plans to meet those targets. It will also set out plans to work with industry to develop less harmful products, and to help developing nations create better waste disposal systems to keep plastics out of the water.

More than half of the plastic that ends up in the oceans — everything from single- use water and soda bottles to grocery bags and food wraps — comes from just five countries in Asia, where garbage collection is lacklustre at best.