Earth Day 2018: California has 5 bills to Reduce Plastic Pollution

Earth Day 2018: How California lawmakers Working Towards Reducing Plastic Pollution? End Quote

(1888PressRelease) June 14, 2018 - San Diego, California: In San Diego, beach cleanups have become a way of life. During 2017, many organizations held hundreds of beach cleanups, with more than 7,000 volunteers removing around 10,000 pounds of trash and debris that otherwise would have ended up in ocean.

Each year, people hope that they will see less plastic on the shores. But the reality is much difficult as plastic pollution is getting worse. Some of the things which are causing high plastic pollution are:- the plastic bottle cap, plastic straws, microfibers, food packaging and cigarettes.

What is Earth Day and How it is Working towards Ending Plastic Pollution?
On 22 April 1970, millions of people took to the streets to protest the negative impacts of 150 years of industrial development. In the US and around the world, smog was becoming deadly and there were strong evidence about the harmful effects of pollution on children and general population. Heavy use of pesticides and other pollutants were harming the earth’s environment. Due to increased awareness about global ecosystem, US congress and President created the Environmental Protection Agency and robust environmental laws. Now Earth Day is a global event each year and more than 1 billion people in 192 countries take part in it.

Earth Day Network (EDN), the organization that leads the Earth Day worldwide, has chosen to End Plastic Pollution as the theme for 2018. They are also creating support for a global effort to eliminate primary single use plastics and global regulation for the disposal of plastics which is becoming a major headache for all of the world. EDN is educating millions of people about the health and other risks associated with the use and disposal of plastics, including pollution of our oceans, water, and wildlife and about the growing body of evidence that plastic waste is creating serious global problems.

Earth Day Network is looking at the platform of Earth Day and the growing interest in the 50th Anniversary of Earth Day in 2020 as a catalyst for global action towards ending plastic pollution.

How California Lawmakers are working to End Plastic Pollution?
The theme of Earth day on April 22 is “End Plastic Pollution”. Good thing is California legislators are already working in this direction. They have made many laws to reach this goal. Four years ago, they made California the first state to ban single-use plastic grocery sacks with 52 percent of the voters agreed with the law in a 2016 referendum.

In 2018, the lawmakers are going after many other plastics that pollutes the ocean, beaches, streets and the parks. Environmentalists say single use plastics will keep on polluting as long as they are offered to consumers. Much of this plastic end up at sea and threatens sea life and degrade the ocean’s ecosystem.

The Sufrider Foundation tells about many California restaurants that are now exercising many environment sensitive practices which is a positive step in right direction but this practice is needed to be widened.

State legislature is working in this direction for long to reduce the plastic pollution and now it is considering these many measures this session to reduce and completely stop the plastic pollution in future:-

Plastic Straws:- AB 1184 would ban restaurants from offering single use plastic straws. Plastic straws are the fifth most common beach trash in the US, as per the data from six US organizations involved in cleanups.

Microfibers:- AB 2379 would require clothing with more than 50 percent synthetic material to include a label that the garment would shed plastic microfibers when washed.

Plastic Bottle Caps:- AB 2779 would require single use plastic beverage bottles with caps to have those caps permanently attached to the bottle. Bottle caps are the second most common beach trash as per the 5 Gyres institute report.

Food Packaging:- SB 1335 would require that take out containers and other single use packaging for ready to eat food and beverages at government agencies be recyclable. Food wrappers are the most commonly found beach trash as per the 5 Gyres Institute.

Cigarettes:- SB 836 would ban smoking on state beaches. AB 2308 would ban the sale of cigarettes with single use filters. The Ocean Conservancy reports that cigarette butts are the single most collected item at its beach cleanups and it costs millions to clean up cigarette butts annually.

These all bills by legislators will certainly bring down the plastic pollution from current levels and thus will fulfill the promise on The Earth Day on 22 April 2018, to reduce and finally eliminate the plastic pollution considerably which is degrading the Earth’s ecosystem and polluting the oceans at very high level.

Xicom is a world’s renowned software development company which also supports these kinds of social initiatives by Government Agencies and NGOs around the world. On this Earth’s day on 22 April 2018, Xicom is dedicated to support all those who are working to stop the menace of plastic pollution. We fully support the California legislators to frame new laws to reduce or stop plastic pollution. We can hope that the future of Earth’s environment will be less polluted by plastics and the laws which are enacted in California will give a medium to implement these in all parts of US and the world in future.

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