Pandemic opens new front in war on plastic
A NEW war on single-use plastics has been declared by ministers, amid mounting concern the coronavirus pandemic risks “undoing” Britain’s progress on recycling.
Writing in The Daily Telegraph, the environment ministers Lord Goldsmith and Rebecca Pow say that as the country emerges from the public health crisis, “we must pick up where we left off” in the fight against plastic pollution. They add: “We must ensure that our hard-won progress is not undone.”
Writing after it emerged that the Government has spent £15 billion on personal protective equipment (PPE), Lord Goldsmith and Ms Pow note that during the pandemic there has been an “unavoidable reliance on single-use plastics”, and reveal the Government is investigating reusable and biodegradable versions of protective equipment such as gowns, masks and visors. Campaigners
have warned the pandemic risks billions of disposable masks and gloves ending up in the ocean.
As well as PPE, coronavirus has seen a rise in the use of disposable cutlery, sachets and containers amid fears reusable versions could carry the virus. Most coffee shops have banned the use of reusable cups, despite a surge in their use before the pandemic.
The ministers commit to pushing ahead with a landmark law to outlaw
the use of plastic straws, stirrers and cotton buds, which was due to be voted on in April, but was halted by the pandemic. The Government wants the ban in place as soon as October.
Alternatives to disposable PPE being offered to the Government by scientists include a visor made of cellulose wood pulp, which would naturally degrade in the environment.
Lord Goldsmith and Ms Pow write: “We are actively thinking across the Government and NHS whether we can safely reuse PPE and are aware of other countries who have begun looking at the potential to decontaminate and reuse it. And as we emerge from the pandemic, we must pick up from where we left off – driving forward with our ambitious plans to lead the global fight on unnecessary single-use plastics and each play our part to make real change.”
Campaigners and marine scientists have said that green versions of PPE cannot come soon enough, warning that it could take up to 500 years for polypropylene face masks to degrade.
One study by UCL estimates that in the UK alone, if every person used a singleuse face mask every day for a year, it would create an additional 66,000 tonnes of contaminated waste and 57,000 tons of plastic packaging. Globally 129 billion masks and 65 billion plastic gloves are being used each month, according to some estimates.
Dr Pennie Lindeque, an ocean scientist and professor at Plymouth Marine Laboratory, said: “PPE could definitely cause a problem for bigger animals such as turtles eating it, and smaller animals getting covered and stuck in it. The plastic will become smaller and smaller and degrade. It becomes a microplastic and those are also incredibly harmful to the small animals that form the basis of the food web, particularly zooplankton.”
Louise Edge, senior plastics campaigner at Greenpeace, said: “Sadly it won’t be long before we see marine wildlife eating plastic masks, which float in the water like jellyfish, or hear of gloves being ingested by precious river animals that mistake them for food.”