Treaty won't stem the tide of plastic waste | Letters

Edward Milner fears little will change without a universal levy, if not an outright ban, on the manufacture of single-use plastics. Roger Munday shares a cautionary allegorical tale of a baby crabI fear that the global plastics treaty is unlikely to "stem the tide" of waste, as your editorial (8 March) suggests. Without a universal levy, if not an outright ban, on the manufacture and use of single-use plastics, little will change - the profits are too big. The global plastics industry makes billions and has done so for decades. Using the "polluter pays" principle, it is clear where responsibility for the clean-up is located.Unfortunately, as with many of our planetary problems, this treaty is an attempt to tackle the effects of lucrative bad practice without holding the polluters to account. No wonder Greta Thunberg talks about "blah, blah, blah".Edward Milner Associate professor, Sustainability Research Institute, University of East London Continue reading...