Turning the Tide Newsletter – Spring 2023
Unwrapped: Australia’s Plastic Emissions
The hidden climate cost of Australia’s plastic emissions have been revealed in a new report.
Did you know that Australia’s plastic addiction is not just directly harming wildlife, but also fueling global warming? Groundbreaking new research released by AMCS and WWF Australia shows that the plastics Australians consume in one year produce as much greenhouse gas as 5.7 million cars on our roads annually. Alarmingly, projections show that Australia’s plastic emissions will more than double by 2050 if we continue on our current path. Virgin fossil fuel based plastics are by far the worst, generating more than twice the emissions of recycled or plant based plastics. Unfortunately, recycling alone only reduces emissions a little. The research shows that the most effective way to reduce plastic emissions is to cut plastic use and to stop using virgin plastic made from fossil fuels.
This research was made possible by hundreds of AMCS supporters who chipped in to World Oceans Day last year – thank you!