Earth Day 2018 calls for an end to plastic pollution

Earth Day 2018 is here and will be celebrated on Sunday (22 April) around the world.

The event is almost 50 years old having first started in the US on 22 April 1970. At that time, millions of people protested against environmental damage caused by decades of industrial development.

Its pioneering work spawned an entire environmental movement and laws to safeguard nature. From its initial successes, the network has grown to unite 50,000 partners in 192 countries, and now engages an estimated one billion people around the world.

This landmark event has always turned its attention to some of the most pressing issues of the day, from climate change to deforestation. Earth Day 2016 was chosen as the date to sign the now historic Paris climate agreement.

This year, Earth Day is focusing on plastic pollution. Publicity around the problem has been growing in recent years, and public awareness has grown hugely.

It seems a day doesn’t go by without major corporations and governments making pledges to reduce and eradicate plastic waste.

Earth Day 2018 wants to encourage people to learn more about single-use plastics and make a pledge to reduce our usage.

The Earth Day Network has set up a plastic calculator where you can work out how much you use and how to make simple changes to prevent waste.

Some of the facts are mind-boggling, Greenpeace estimates 12.7 million tonnes of plastic ends up in our oceans, an average of one truck load per minute. And this material will negatively impact wildlife for hundreds of years.

Kathleen Rogers, the Earth Day Network’s President has this to say about the issue: “From poisoning and injuring marine life to the ubiquitous presence of plastics in our food to disrupting human hormones and causing major life-threatening diseases and early puberty, the exponential growth of plastics is threatening our planet’s survival”.

Learn more about how you can get involved here.

#EarthDay2018 #EndPlasticPollution