US President Donald Trump has his own ideas on sensitive issues like climate change and plastic pollution that threaten the well-being of the environment. He withdrew from the 2015 Paris Accord on climate change and now, in 2018, he ignored the subject of controlling plastic wastes at the G7 summit. Since plastic is non-biodegradable, such products remain as litter and pose a serious danger to marine lives.
According to Fortune, a 2015 study reported an "estimated eight million metric tons of plastic end up in the ocean" every year and this is a matter of concern.
It has to be addressed at every level because it poses a serious danger to marine ecology.
The reluctance of Donald Trump is strange
It is difficult to understand the reluctance of Donald Trump to endorse the actions of checking plastic pollution. It is a global issue and featured on the agenda of the G7 summit. The subject has been given wide coverage at different levels to raise awareness among the people, and at the end of the summit, the participants agreed to restrict the use of disposable plastics and explore alternatives.
However, the US did not attach too much importance to reducing the amount of plastic waste in the world’s oceans. In this context, the European Union has recently proposed an outright ban on single-use plastics that make up the bulk of the waste.
These have an adverse effect on the environment and marine animals mistake them as edible items and pay the price with their lives.
Donald Trump must realize the seriousness
Plastic has become an integral part of our lives and the dangers of using them is gradually coming to the surface. Donald Trump must realize the seriousness of plastic pollution and get involved in the cleanup process.
When marine animals wash up on the beach with huge amounts of plastic in their stomach, or turtles get entangled in plastic bags or birds choke on plastic debris, it is high time to acknowledge the fact that the health of the environment is in danger.
Sky News reported that Ireland produces more than 60kg of plastic waste per person per year and has earned the distinction of being Europe's biggest plastic polluter.
On an average, every person "uses six plastic bottles each week" and that adds up to a huge volume of waste which remains as an eyesore for decades.
In the opinion of the country's marine minister, Michael Creed, large corporations should consider investing in research and development of alternative packaging material that will be biodegradable. It is not enough to depute teams to collect the plastic waste from the beaches and send it for recycling. The bottom line is to say ‘no’ to plastic and bring back the era of paper and cardboard packaging.
