Big Oil is racing to make more plastic as demand for fossil fuel energy is plummeting.
Fossil fuels are the core element in the production of plastics. Faced with falling profits from dirty energy use, the industry is proposing massive expansion of the petrochemical production of plastics—drowning our communities and oceans in plastic trash.
Our partners in China are pressuring companies like Starbucks to reduce the amount of plastics they use to package food and drinks.
Together with our long-term local partners, we have been building a broad campaign—as part of a powerful international movement called “Break Free From Plastic”—to challenge plastic pollution in river towns of China and coastal communities of Vietnam.
We are delighted that the national governments of both countries have taken notice and issued strong national directives to reduce plastic waste.
Our next move is to fund and train grassroots activists to advocate full implementation of these Plastics Directives in their provinces and cities.
This new push will complement the superb work our local partners are already doing to achieve plastic bans, help communities reduce the amount of waste they produce, pressure companies to stop using plastic in packaging, and persuade regional governments to adopt the successful local models our partners have developed to reduce plastic trash.
For example, one partner in Nanjing, China, identified over one hundred companies that overpackage their products in unnecessary plastic. Staff started recruiting college students to serve as the public face of a campaign that is now pressuring retailers to rethink, and of course reduce, their plastic packaging footprint.
Supporting local groups reinforces an international campaign to keep plastic out of our oceans and communities. That’s why your support is so critical.
Thank you for all you do to stand up to Big Oil’s reckless plastic play.
