The University of Exeter’s Professor Tamara Galloway has spoken at the Houses of Parliament in support of the Zero Plastic Waste Report, which calls for a renewed anti-plastic policy.
The new report is titled Plastic Packaging Plan: Achieving Net Zero Waste Exports and was produced by Policy Connect. Supported by a collective group of 12 political parties, the report contains 18 policy recommendations that aim to establish a national Plastic Packaging Plan before 2030.
Professor Galloway’s research into the environment impacts of microplastic pollution on the wellbeing of humans and marine wildlife has received several national awards.
Speaking to Exeposé, Professor Galloway said “it was fantastic to speak at this exciting event and to get such great feedback from so many people about our research. The event was attended by all sorts of people, including businesses working on recycling solutions, sustainable packaging manufacturers, environmental NGOs and many politicians. It was such a positive experience and let’s hope it has a good outcome in reducing ocean plastics”.
“It was fantastic to speak at this exciting event and to get such great feedback from so many people […] let’s hope it has a good outcome in reducing ocean plastics”.
– Professor Tamara Galloway, University of Exeter
According to a press release published on the University of Exeter’s website, the report reveals that the UK uses 3.3m tonnes of plastic packaging every year, which is above the EU average. It is hence recommended that the Government institutes radical policies to cut use of virgin plastics.
the UK uses 3.3m tonnes of plastic packaging every year.
These policies are intended to help the UK’s recycling industry overcome the challenge of a Chinese ban on imports of plastic waste. Until January 2018, Britain shipped 500,000 tonnes of plastic for recycling in China every year. Without a significant change in policy, UK recycling association are adamant that the UK will be unable to deal with the majority of the waste.
