The problem of plastic pollution is at its worst and is not getting better.  Globally, waterways have become increasingly polluted, strangling marine life and creating garbage dumps of our magnificent oceans and Great Lakes. According to the Ellen MacArthur Foundation Report launched at the World Economic Forum in 2016, by the year 2050 we can expect to have more plastic in the ocean that fish, with an average of one refuse truck of plastic being dumped into the world's seas every minute. Plastic goods are only growing in demand and although many are recyclable, only 5% actually is. Not to mention the fact that unlike glass and other materials, plastic is only able to be recycled a limited number of times and is therefore unsustainable regardless. 

The long-term effects of the small fragments of plastic that are beginning to litter the seabed are unknown, however we are already witnessing the presence of these microplastics in marine life, including the fish we consume. Plastics leach harmful chemicals that easily migrate up the food chain, some of which have already found to be present in humans. 

The solution to this is for the world's governments to take action and finally put a ban on the use and distribution of single-use plastics that are not biodegradable. Countless options already exist made of various different materials. the UN Environment lists a few: edible cutlery made of sorghum, plates and cutlery made of bamboo or palm leaf, natural packaging foam made of fungus and agricultural waste, expired milk recreated as a natural clothing fiber, and even pineapple pleather as a replacement for shoes and other plastic goods. 

Canada can and should be a global leader in the initiative to save the global environment from plastic pollution, beginning in our own backyard with our Great Lakes and long coastlines. Please! The issue grows worse each passing day. Let us help us help ourselves by restoring a clean and livable environment that does not grow sick and polluted by our own hands.