Aside from the pandemic, one issue that has received a lot more attention in recent years is “The Consistently Increasing threat to the Environment.” This is not a recent problem; it has existed for decades, if not centuries. And, in this article, we will discuss this issue and how world-renowned organisations such as the United Nations are doing everything they can to raise public awareness of the problem and find long-term solutions to it.
UNEP and Its Campaign:
To begin with, the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) is the leading environmental authority that sets the environmental aim, promotes the consistent implementation of the environmental dimension of sustainable development within the United Nations system, and acts as an advocate with authority for the global environment. Since it was formed in 1972, UNEP has worked to induce reframing changes for all of us and nature by searching for the root causes of three global crises: climate change, biodiversity loss, and pollution and waste.
The United Nations Environment Programme, or UNEP, is an intergovernmental organization dedicated to protecting and enhancing the natural environment. Headquartered in Nairobi, Kenya and with offices around the world, UNEP acts as a forum where governments and non-governmental organizations can cooperate to safeguard the natural environment for future generations.
Now, let’s move on to the biggest issue of the time and that is the “Truth Of Plastic.” Microplastics are tiny particles of plastic under 5mm in size and they alone account for 1.3 million tonnes(11%) of total plastic pollution which is a huge number. They’re everywhere but you cannot see them in oceans or your home or clothing or food, etc. Once released, microplastics cannot be blocked through any wastewater systems so, as a result, they end up in our rivers, lakes or oceans. Not only this but every minute one garbage truck of plastic is dumped into our ocean. We know that the ocean not only regulates our climate but also generates most of the oxygen we breathe. So, plastic pollution may be a challenge and an issue for all of us but the solution always lies in our hands. It has been predicted by UNEP that by 2050, we will have more plastics in our ocean than fish.
“It is past time that we address the plastic pollution that is wreaking havoc on our oceans.” Plastic pollution is washing up on beaches, settling on the ocean floor, and making its way up the food chain to our dinner plates. We’ve been sitting on the sidelines for far too long as the situation has deteriorated. “It has to stop,” said Erik Solheim, UN Environment Secretary-General, at the launch of the Clean Seas campaign.
Hence, to tackle this huge problem we are facing today due to our deeds only, UNEP has launched its very own “CLEAN SEAS CAMPAIGN”.
Clean Seas aims to harness the collective power of the public in the fight against marine litter and plastic pollution. Plastic pollution is not just a waste problem; it is also a production, consumption, and handling issue that must be addressed upstream, from individuals to businesses and governments. Since 2017, 63 countries have joined the campaign, thanks to pledgers like you, committing to specific legislative or policy actions to help reduce the use of unnecessary, avoidable, and problematic plastics.
Also, Kenya announced a ban in early 2017 on the manufacture and import of all plastic bags later that year. Each year, supermarkets distributed some 100 million plastic bags, which, when discarded, became litter that killed birds, fish, and other animals that mistook the bags for food; damaged agricultural land; and polluted tourist sites and breeding grounds for mosquitoes (which carry malaria and dengue fever).
After years of inaction, during which time pollution and overfishing had made the health of the world’s oceans dire, many countries have begun to take action. In February, Dell announced that it was using recycled plastic retrieved from the ocean in its product packaging. The announcement was followed by more pledges by organizations worldwide. These will be presented at “The Ocean Conference” on June 5th in New York City which will bring together governments, UN agencies and other actors to address the problems facing our oceans, including overfishing and ocean acidification.
As a result, UNEP has done its job by launching this global campaign for us, and it is now our responsibility to follow it wholeheartedly and implement it in our lives to completely eradicate the problem.
Now, the question is what can we as an individual do to help UNEP and at a higher level, what can our governments do?
How can YOU contribute:
Each of us can make a difference in the fight against plastic pollution. By bringing your bags, cups, straws and water bottles to the store, you can cut down on plastic consumption; refusing to buy personal care products that contain microplastics and plastic packaging also helps. Each action is one more step toward curbing the plastic menace.
You can take the Clean Seas Pledge and hence, take in new habits to limit your plastic footprint.
For inspiration, UNEP has a list of a few things one can do to beat this plastic pollution. They are as follows:
- CLEAN A BEACH
- CLEAN A RIVER
- QUIT SMOKING
- SHOP SUSTAINABLY
- TRY ZERO WASTE LIFESTYLE
- TRAVEL SUSTAINABLY
- BE AN ADVOCATE FOR CHANGE
- DRESS SUSTAINABLY
- CHOSE PLASTIC-FREE PERSONAL CARE PRODUCTS
On the other side, Governments play an important role in the plastics value chain because they set the rules for everyone else to follow. As a result, governments can do several things, all of which are important and must be implemented in a coordinated manner to achieve the necessary systemic change. To help combat the problem of plastic pollution, governments can encourage producers to develop packaging material that is reusable or recyclable. They can promote innovation so that the plastics we need are designed and brought into the economy in a way that allows materials to circumnavigate the linear waste stream and instead be reused, as reusability is seen as the norm rather than the exception. Also, they will have to ensure that materials are reused and recycled for as long as possible. For example, a government can provide incentives to use reusable products such as cloth bags and containers. In addition, the government can require the development of waste collection and recycling infrastructure. They can also offer incentives for people to reduce, reuse, or recycle materials.
Hence, these are some points that we as an individual can follow to help UNEP in this campaign and also, how a government can help UNEP at a much higher level to make sure we implement the campaign well and accordingly.
Latest Update
Nairobi, 02 March 2022 – Heads of State, Ministers of environment and other representatives from the UN Member States endorsed a historic resolution at the UN Environment Assembly (UNEA-5) today in Nairobi to End Plastic Pollution and forge an international legally binding agreement by 2024. The resolution addresses the full lifecycle of plastic, including its production, design and disposal.
Conclusion
Hence, Plastic is a material that was originally introduced to replace other materials, and help us reduce the use of paper. The truth is that plastic has proved itself to be much more harmful than we could ever have anticipated. While up until now the problem of plastic waste has been focused on land, it has now become a global problem. Since plastics are not biodegradable, they will remain in our oceans for years/generations to come if not properly dealt with today. If we want to protect our environment, the only way to achieve this is to clean our seas of plastic. This will require a combination of political will and individual commitment and sacrifice. UNEP Clean Seas Campaign is asking all of us to take action that will help us to preserve the oceans for future generations. So, we can all make simple choices that will have an enormous impact on the preservation of our oceans. Each choice small or big makes a difference when made collectively.
References:
- https://www.unep.org
- https://www.facebook.com/unep
- https://www.un.org/youthenvoy/2013/08/unep-united-nations-environment-programme/
- https://www.cleanseas.org/take-action/face-the-plastic-truth
- https://www.gpmarinelitter.org/news/blogpost/face-plastic-truth-clean-seas-campaign
- https://www.unep.org/interactives/beat-plastic-pollution/
- https://www.unep.org/news-and-stories/press-release/historic-day-campaign-beat-plastic-pollution-nations-commit-develop
- https://fctc.who.int/newsroom/news/item/01-02-2022-unep-secretariat-of-the-who-fctc-partner-to-combat-microplastics-in-cigarettes
- https://www.nationalgeographic.com/science/article/plastic-pollution-huge-problem-not-too-late-to-fix-it
- https://www.un.org/africarenewal/magazine/may-july-2017/plastics-pose-biggest-threat-oceans
- https://www.biologicaldiversity.org/campaigns/ocean_plastics/
