New global alliance commits over $1bn to help end plastic waste in the environment

by

The Alliance to End Plastic Waste (AEPW), a alliance of global companies from the plastics and consumer goods value chain, was launched yesterday (16 January) to advance solutions to the challenge of plastic waste in the environment, especially in the ocean.

Currently nearly 30 members strong, the AEPW has committed more than $1bn (with the target of investing $1.5bn over the next five years) to help end plastic waste in the environment.

The AEPW also aims to develop solutions for used plastics by helping to enable a circular economy, with representatives in:

  • North and South America,
  • Europe,
  • Central Asia,
  • Southeast Asia,
  • Africa, and
  • The Middle East.

David Taylor, Chairman of the Board, President and CEO of Procter & Gamble, and chairman of the AEPW, said: “Everyone agrees that plastic waste does not belong in our oceans or anywhere in the environment. This is a complex and serious global challenge that calls for swift action and strong leadership. This new alliance is the most comprehensive effort to date to end plastic waste in the environment. I urge all companies, big and small and from all regions and sectors, to join us.”

For the planet, not the profit

The Alliance is a not-for-profit organisation that includes companies that make, use, sell, process, collect, and recycle plastics. This includes chemical and plastic manufacturers, consumer goods companies, retailers, converters, and waste management companies, also known as the plastics value chain.

Veolia CEO Antoine Frérot, a vice chairman of the AEPW, added: “Addressing plastic waste in the environment and developing a circular economy of plastics requires the participation of everyone across the entire value chain and the long-term commitment of businesses, governments, and communities. No one country, company or community can solve this on their own.”

Research from the Ocean Conservancy shows that nearly 80 per cent of plastic waste in the ocean begins as litter on land, the vast majority of which travels to the sea by rivers. One study estimates that over 90 per cent of river-borne plastic in the ocean comes from 10 major rivers around the world – eight in Asia, and two in Africa. Sixty percent of plastic waste in the ocean can be sourced to five countries in Southeast Asia.

Tags

by

The EUREKA Series

EPPM's EUREKA Series touches on the out-of-the-box thinking that may seem peculiar now, but could influence and innovate plastics as we know it in the future.