The problem with the plastic debate
Plastic taxes are good intentions but bad economics. The European Union’s new plastic tax has come into effect on January 1. You’ll see this new tax often described as an EU-tax that you pay directly as a consumer into a treasury in Brussels. While that indirectly true, it’s important to understand how it works. The […]
A plastics ban will only make the pandemic consumer pinch worse
Plastic bags, stir sticks, straws, cutlery, six-pack rings and certain takeout containers — the six single-use plastic items that the Trudeau government is going to ban is a short list but the consequences of this policy will be long-lasting. On the surface, banning these items may seem like a small step, but the government’s proposal […]
Trudeau’s ‘plastic ban’ won’t help the environment. It could actually harm it instead
Opinion: Alternatives have a significantly higher total impact on the environment, while inflating costs for consumers By David Clement This week, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced his government will seek to ban many single-use plastics starting in 2021. Although the final list of banned items is still undetermined, it will likely include plastic bags, takeaway […]
Ah … because oil is the problem, eateries (and patrons) pay the price
Jeff Stier of the Consumer Choice Center says all Americans are affected by what happens in the oceans and should all work to reduce pollution – but that doesn’t justify banning all uses of products, he argues.S “And it’s not only to ban plastics because they claim it winds up in the ocean,” he adds, “but [also] […]
Das Luftballonverbot hilft Schildkröten nur wenig
Das Europäische Parlament hat mit überwältigender Mehrheit am 24. Oktober für ein Verbot von vielen Produkten gestimmt, die aus Einwegplastik hergestellt werden. So sollen zum Beispiel ab dem Jahr 2021 Einwegteller und Besteck aus Plastik, sowie Q-Tips oder Luftballonhalter verboten werden. Ferner sollen Hersteller vieler Einwegprodukte direkt für die Entsorgung dieser Produkte zahlen, obgleich sie […]
We can fight climate change without hurting consumers
If you haven’t clocked that we’ve really got it wrong on the environment, you must have been living under a rock. In the last ten years, we have produced more plastic than we did in the last century – and we only recover 5% of the plastic we currently use. Hurricanes, droughts and coral deaths […]
Emerging markets should oppose plastic bans
The European Commission’s new plastic strategy is moving closer to final completion, after the European Parliament added an even longer list of banned plastic items. However, the consequences for emerging economies should not be ignored. The European Parliament’s environment committee’s version adds thin plastic bags, products made of oxodegradable plastics, and takeaway boxes and cups […]
Do you want to save the turtles? Don’t ban plastics – ban littering
FOAM FACTS: Like any good Londoner, I used the fantastic summer weather to kayak from Limehouse to Hackney, discovering that part of the city by water. As a fairly experienced river and sea kayaker, I was taken aback by how full of litter London’s waters are. At around the same time, the national and global debate […]
Single-use plastic and the sign industry
SIGNLINK: Fred Roeder of London-based lobby group Consumer Choice says: “By banning single-use plastics such as Styrofoam cups, straws, stirrers and cotton buds in Europe we won’t solve the actual problem, which is the terrible pollution of our oceans with plastic litter. While the EU accounts for over 20 percent of the world’s economic output, it […]
Global konsumentorganisation gör tummen ner för EU:s plastpolitik
PACKNEWS: Den globala konsumentorganisationen Consumer Choice Center (CCC), med huvudsäte i Arlington, Virginia, USA och som representerar konsumenter i mer än 100 länder, gör tummen ner för EU:s förslag till direktiv om förbud mot vissa plastprodukter. ”Medlemsländernas EU-ambassadörer borde stå upp för konsumenterna i sina respektive länder i stället för att följa EU-kommissionens och EU-parlamentets missvisande […]
Der letzte Strohhalm – Wie die Anti-Plastik-Politik alles nur verschlimmert
Das Verbot von Plastiktrinkhalmen, die Besteuerung von Plastiktüten oder das Phänomen des Verbots von Styropor in Großstädten: Ein Teil des politischen Spektrums ist besessen davon, die Welt komplett von Kunststoff zu befreien. Diese Maßnahmen werfen jedoch die Frage auf, ob sie ihre Ziele tatsächlich erreichen und welche unbeabsichtigten Folgen der anti-Plastik Wahn hat. Von unserem Gastautor […]
Single-use plastics ban comes in for criticism
IMAGE REPORTS: The Austrian EU presidency has signalled a common line to negotiate a Europe-wide single-use plastics ban with the European Commission and Parliament. Managing director of the Consumer Choice Centre Fred Roeder has criticised the current negotiation position of the council. “The EU ambassadors should stand up for consumers and consumer choice in their member […]
