e-2102 (Environmental pollution)
- Keywords
- 8545-421-220-03 Government Response to petitions concerning environmental pollution
- Ban
- Plastics
Original language of petition: English
Petition to the Minister of Environment and Climate Change
- 8.3 billion metric tons of plastic have been produced since the 1950s;
- Plastic is not biodegradable and could exist for hundreds or thousands of years;
- Nearly two million single-use plastic bags are circulated worldwide every minute, and over one billion plastic bags are distributed annually in Canada;
- Over 8 million metric tons of plastic enter the oceans annually, threatening 700 marine animal species;
- Around 10,000 tons of plastic enter the Great Lakes annually, and microplastics can remain in drinking water even after water treatment;
- Research finds that there are 1.1 million microbeads per square kilometre in Lake Ontario;
- Extrapolating from current trends, plastic pollution will outweigh fish by 2050;
- Some countries, including Kenya, Malibu, Morocco, Rwanda, South Korea, the UK, Vanuatu, and Zimbabwe, have mobilized to reduce the manufacture and use of plastics;
- There are eco-friendly and cost-effective alternatives for non-biodegradable and single-use plastics
- We must take action to combat climate change and achieve environmental sustainability; and
- The involvement and initiative of Canada in reducing and eliminating plastic pollution would most definitely motivate other countries to contribute to positive change and would be the start of much-needed progress.
- Open for signature
- March 6, 2019, at 2:55 p.m. (EDT)
- Closed for signature
- May 5, 2019, at 2:55 p.m. (EDT)
- Presented to the House of Commons
-
Mark Gerretsen
(Kingston and the Islands)
May 15, 2019 (Petition No. 421-03780) - Government response tabled
- July 17, 2019