London throws away a significant amount of plastic waste. According to the Ellen MacArthur Foundation; by 2050, there will be more plastic in the sea than fish.
Since Blue Planet supermarkets and restaurants have been under public pressure to reduce their plastic waste and offer alternatives.
The Evening Standard’s ‘Last straw’ campaign has highlighted London’s throwaway plastic culture. As a result of the campaign many restaurants have pledged to remove single-use plastic straws from their establishments.
It has been estimated that UK supermarkets create more than 800,000 tonnes of plastic packaging waste annually. [2]
They have come under fire for their contribution to plastic waste, so what are they planning to do to reduce it?
Tomorrow, the London Assembly Environment Committee will discuss the use of plastics, how we can reduce their environmental impact and promote the use of alternatives. The guests are:
- Richard Walker, Managing Director, Iceland
- Joe Kerr, Regional Manager, The Co-operative Food
- Alice Ellison, Environment Policy Adviser, British Retail Consortium
- Janice Morley, Homes and Property Editor, Evening Standard
- Barry Turner, Group Director, British Plastics Federation
- Dan Cooke, Regulatory Affairs Director, Viridor
- Dr Antoine Buchard, Research Fellow, Centre for Sustainable Chemical Technologies
- Simon Ellin, CEO, The Recycling Association
- Libby Peake, Senior Policy Advisor, The Green Alliance
In the first part of the meeting (10:00am-11:00am approx.), the Committee will question Shirley Rodrigues, the Deputy Mayor for Environment and Energy on the Mayor’s environmental record to date. The Mayor is approaching the mid-point of his term, so what has he done to improve London’s environment so far?
The meeting will take place on Thursday, 15 March from 10:00am in The Chamber (The Queen’s Walk, London SE1).
Media and members of the public are invited to attend
The meeting can also be viewed LIVE via webcast or YouTube
Follow us and take part in the meeting discussion using #AssemblyEnv and #throwawayplastics
Notes to editors
- Full agenda papers.
- Eunomia, Informing the Plastics Debate, February 2018
- Leonie Cooper AM, Chair of the Environment Committee is available for interview. See contact details below.
- Environment Committee.
- As well as investigating issues that matter to Londoners, the London Assembly acts as a check and a balance on the Mayor.
For media enquiries, please contact Lisa Lam on 020 7983 4067. For out of hours media enquiries, call 020 7983 4000 and ask for the London Assembly duty press officer. Non-media enquiries should be directed to the Public Liaison Unit on 020 7983 4100.