Earth Day 2024 –The Planet Vs Plastic

Earth Day is held today (Monday, April 22) and sees people across the world from all backgrounds come together to advance sustainability and highlight the need to protect the climate and environment. The theme of this year’s Earth Day is The Planet Vs Plastic and calls for a global reduction in the production of plastic of 60% by 2040.

Warwickshire County Council is supporting Earth Day by reminding residents of the important things that everyone can do to be part of this movement:

1. Always go reusable – This could be your water bottle, coffee cup or shopping bag, but avoid single-use items and instead get reusable versions. Think of the plastic you'll be saving every time you use them!

2. Clear up some litter in your local area – Every little bit you collect on your litter pick helps wildlife, and if you can recycle what you pick up even better!

3. When shopping – choose the options with the least packaging. You could try a zero waste shop or make small changes such as choosing loose fruit and vegetables, or brands that have the least plastic in their packaging.

4. Recycle everything you can – There is inevitably always some plastic to dispose of, so try to recycle whatever you can. Most plastic can go into your household recycling, but you may be able to recycle even more (such as soft plastic bags) at your local supermarket.

5. Repair rather than throw away – You can avoid plastics getting into waste streams by making a commitment, where possible, to repair rather than replace. To help with this we have fantastic Repair Café’s in Warwickshire. Find out more: https://www.sustainablewarwickshire.co.uk/warwickshireclimateemergency/resources-waste-circular-economy-3/repair-caf%C3%A9s

Plastic pollution is a real problem that affects our environment, our health and wellbeing and contributes to carbon emissions:

• Over 2 million plastic bags are used every minute worldwide and the average time that a plastic bag is used in its lifetime before being discarded is 12 minutes (Source: EcoWatch)
• One million plastic bottles are bought every minute worldwide (Source: The EcoExperts);
• 32% of all plastic packaging produced finds its way to our oceans every year (Source: UN Environment Programme);
• 73% of beach litter worldwide is plastic (Source: National Geographic);
• Based on current rates of plastic entering waterways, by 2050 there could be more plastic than fish in the ocean which means all life depending upon the oceans will be consuming plastics (Source: The World Economic Forum); and
• You will ingest an average of 70,000 microplastics each year (Source: Earth Day Foundation)!

Mark Ryder, Executive Director for Communities at Warwickshire County Council, said: “The sheer scale of our planet’s plastic problem is staggering and complicated. When faced with such large numbers it’s easy to just assume that you won’t be able to make a difference through your own actions, but this could not be further from the truth.

“As with the so many elements of the climate and environmental emergency that currently faces our world, there is a lot of little things that individuals can do to make a big difference. I would urge anyone who is able to try some of our tips for reducing plastic use on Earth Day 2024 and beyond as together we can continue to strive for a Warwickshire that is sustainable now and for future generations.”

Find out more about Earth Day 2024 here: https://www.earthday.org/earth-day-2024/   

For more information about how Warwickshire County Council is facing the challenges of the climate change emergency, visit: https://www.sustainablewarwickshire.co.uk/

Get the latest news about how Warwickshire County Council and partners are facing the challenge of the climate emergency and how you can get involved: http://eepurl.com/hrk-zf