With no federal plastics law, US states are acting: seven have packaging extended producer responsibility (EPR) and California ended plastic checkout bags from 1…
Since South Australia led in 2021, six states and territories have banned plastic straws, cutlery, plates and polystyrene food containers; Tasmania has proposed bans…
The UK now charges producers £423 per tonne of plastic packaging and will add a 20p deposit on drinks containers from 1 October 2027.
The main 7 supermarkets sold 126 million single-use bags in 2025/26, down from 7.6 billion in 2014, before the charge. All 94 reporting retailers…
The Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR) sets binding reuse targets, bans single-use plastic for small fresh produce and hotel miniatures from 2030, and…
The EU’s 2019 directive banned ten single-use items, made tethered caps mandatory from 2024 and set 90% bottle collection by 2029.
Four years after the UN mandate, negotiations have collapsed twice over production caps and chemicals, and a new chair is trying to restart them.
ETH Zurich researchers found plastics accounted for 4.5% of global emissions in 2015, with coal-based emissions quadrupling since 1995.
Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL)’s Plastic & Climate report estimated lifecycle plastic emissions at 850 million tonnes in 2019, rising to 1.34 billion…
A 25-year field study found sludge application raised soil microplastic levels by up to 1,445%, persisting for at least 22 years.
