Guest blog: We need a global treaty on plastics - Here's what it should look like
WRITER Nils Simon Senior Project Manager adelphi research @nsim_berlin Political scientist originally published in ensia Plastics have boosted our economy because they are versatile, cheap and durable. Yet, thanks to these same traits, in the course of establishing a US$750 billion global industry , we have also created a massive problem . Rivers are filled with plastic garbage . Plastic bottles soil beaches . Masses of plastic are floating in the ocean . Birds become entangled in plastic pieces , and whales’ stomachs fill with plastic debris . Plastics can harm humans, too , by releasing toxic additives. And the problem is getting worse: The production of plastics reached 311 million metric tons (343 million tons) in 2014 and is continuing to increase worldwide. Scientists estimate that in 2010 alone between 5 and 13 million metric tons (6 and 14 million tons) of plastics streamed into the sea. Many hopes...