EU Parliament Vice President joins call for Plastics Treaty

VICE PRESIDENT OF EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT JOINS CALL FOR AMBITIOUS PLASTICS TREATY

EUROPEAN policymakers, scientists, and academics have joined a collective call demanding global
governments and corporations to address the plastic waste crisis, according to a new Open Letter. The letter has been signed by 34 politicians, scientists, academics, and NGOs.

Ten cross-party Ministers of European Parliament (MEPs) have signed the letter, including the Vice
President of the European Parliament, Heidi Hautala MEP.

According to the Plastic Overshoot Day report, since 8th January 2023, 40 percent of the global population have been living in areas where the total amount of plastic waste generated exceeds the
capacity for countries to manage it properly.

All plastic produced after ‘Overshoot Day’ will subsequently be released into nature. This has particularly impacted countries in the Global South. Signatories have called on global governments to sign an ambitious and legally binding Global Plastics Treaty by 2025, while improving viable waste management systems and urgently clamp down on plastic production.

Corporations must also start measuring their plastic footprint to promote responsible practices,
according to the letter. Swiss non-profit EA Environmental Action has sponsored the creation of this letter.

Julien Boucher PhD, Founder and CEO at EA Environmental Action, said: “To lower risks for society,
businesses, and the planet, we must redesign our plastic systems incorporating more circularity and
better chemistry. This also requires addressing the discrepancy between the amount of plastic being
produced and used, and the capacity of our systems to manage that plastic.

“Plastic Overshoot Day demonstrates how significant of a gap exists here. We need to act now to assess
and reduce our plastic footprints and impacts on global ecosystems and our health. This must happen
both at the country level and the company level.”

EA Environmental Actions forecasts Global Plastic Overshoot Day to be on 28th July 2023.