Greenpeace pulls plug on plastic
Greenpeace takes the battle against plastic pollution to major food outlets, calls for mindset change, writes Bukeka Silekwa
GREENPEACE Africa, Durban, plans to name and shame restaurants and big fast food outlets it accuses of adding to plastic pollution in the sea.
The environmental activist organisation has started an online petition to put pressure on food retailers in Durban to abandon single-use plastics.
More than 8 000 people have added their names to the petition since its launch last month.
Among them were volunteers who joined a recent #Breakfreefromplastic event at Durban’s ushaka Beach.
Supporters scoured the beach, putting any plastic they found in a large sandpit resembling a pool.
Most of the plastic pollution that litters Durban’s beaches has washed down the Mngeni River and its tributaries into the sea at Blue Lagoon.
Environmentalists say it takes many years to break down such plastic waste, posing a risk to marine life and ultimately people who eat it.
“We created this pool and have placed all that we collected during our beach clean-up inside,” said Greenpeace volunteer Johanne Pillay.
“We are asking people, would they like to swim every day in water that has all of this? Do they have any idea that these are the conditions our fish live in?” said Pillay.
The pool publicity stunt forms part of Greenpeace’s efforts to identify and target some of the bigger fish in the corporate food chain – companies that Greenpeace feels must do more to tackle plastic pollution.
So far, Greenpeace has had talks with Wimpy, Ocean Basket and Kauai chains about measures being taken to reduce plastic use.
“They say they are researching, looking into it and they are going to change. But we want to see the change, not hear about it,” said a Greenpeace activist, Melanie Samber.
They need to walk the talk, said Samber, adding that if corporates failed to introduce effective measures to reduce plastic pollution, Greenpeace would call on the public to stop being loyal to them.
“We will name and shame them,” said Samber.
Samber said on a recent visit to Ocean Basket her leftovers came in a plastic bag. “Their water is also sold in branded plastic bottles,” said Samber.
Kauai, which makes much of its ethically sourced produce in its marketing material, came in for criticism too for using plastic straws.
“We checked out three different Kauai stores. All they have done is put a sign next to the straws that says ‘ask at the counter if you want straws’, but they are already available at the counter.”
In a recent statement to Greenpeace, Kauai advised that all its smoothie cups and coffee cups lids and straws were made from recyclable plastic.
“We are looking at even more sustainable alternatives and we hope to introduce an alternative as soon as possible,” reads the statement.
Another Greenpeace volunteer, Melissa van Rensburg, a University of Kwazulu-natal geography and environment student, also called for a return to reusable packaging.
She questioned why the dairies and the makers of fizzy drinks seemed to have moved away from using returnable bottles in favour of plastic.
She said people needed to become conscious about the consequences of the amount of plastic they use.
“People can start making changes, like simply saying no to a (plastic) straw.
“It’s something so small, but it’s a great way to bigger changes that people can make,” said Van Rensburg. – Roving Reporters