British PM tackles "greatest ever environmental scourge" with plan to cut plastic use

LONDON, Jan. 11 (Xinhua) -- British Prime Minister Theresa May launched Britain's biggest ever environment strategy Thursday, pledging to eliminate all avoidable plastic waste by 2042.

Launching s 25 Year Environment Plan, May set out the government's determination to leave the environment in a better state than it found it.

May said in a keynote speech that the government will work with supermarkets to encourage them to introduce plastic-free aisles in which all the food is loose.

A five-pence carrier bag charge which has seen nine billion fewer plastic bags used is to be extended from larger supermarkets and stores in England to all stores.

To encourage industry to take more responsibility for the environmental impacts of their products and make them easier to recycle, the government is also planning to look at how the tax system or charges can further reduce the amount of waste created.

She said the government is to inject new funding into plastics innovation through a 9.5 billion U.S. dollar research and development plan.

A spokesperson for May said 8.3 billion tonnes of plastic have been produced since the 1950s, with research indicating that without urgent action to cut demand this is likely to be 34 billion tonnes by 2050.

Launching the plan, May said: "We look back in horror at some of the damage done to our environment in the past and wonder how anyone could have thought that, for example, dumping toxic chemicals, untreated, into rivers was ever the right thing to do.

"In years to come, I think people will be shocked at how today we allow so much plastic to be produced needlessly. In the UK alone, the amount of single-use plastic wasted every year would fill 1,000 Royal Albert Halls."

May said plastic is ingested by dozens of species of marine mammals and over 100 species of sea birds, causing immense suffering to individual creatures and degrading vital habitats.

One million birds, and over 100,000 other sea mammals and turtles die every year from eating and getting tangled in plastic waste, while one in three fish caught in the English Channel contains pieces of plastic, said May.

"This truly is one of the great environmental scourges of our time," she added.

"Today I can confirm that the UK will demonstrate global leadership. We must reduce the demand for plastic, reduce the number of plastics in circulation and improve our recycling rates. To tackle it we will take action at every stage of the production and consumption of plastic."

It is estimated that 8.3 billion tonnes of plastic have been produced since the 1950s. Research indicates that without urgent action to cut demand this is likely to be 34 billion tonnes by 2050.

The plan will also see the creation of 500,000 hectares of new habitat for endangered species, supporting farmers to turn fields into meadows and other habitats, replenishing depleted soils and providing funds to kick-start a new Northern Forest in England. Enditem