Environment Secretary will today call on sports
leaders from across the Commonwealth to join the fight against
plastic pollution in the world’s oceans.
As part of the Commonwealth Heads of
Government Meeting taking place in London this week, the
Environment Secretary will host leaders from across the sports
sector on board the HMS Belfast in London to drive forward
innovation and agree actions to tackle the global scourge of
plastic.
With mass sporting events often generating up
to 750,000 plastic bottles and seven tonnes of waste, the
Environment Secretary and representatives from Premier League
football, swimming and ocean sailing will look at how the sector
can use its influence to tackle this blight and bring about
global change.
This will build on the work already underway
by industry – with this year’s Commonwealth Games banning the use
of plastic balloons and rolling out water refills to reduce
plastic, and Twickenham Stadium introducing a deposit return
scheme for ‘fan cups’, where fans pay an extra £1 for their cup
and get the money back when they return it to the bar.
Environment Secretary said:
“Plastic pollution is one of the most pressing
environmental challenges of our time and we all have a role to
play to tackle the threats our oceans face.
“There are few groups which have the global
reach and power the sports sector does to inspire change and
mobilise action. The industry is already making great strides,
and I look forward to seeing how they can build on this progress
to be true ambassadors for global change.”
Bill Bush, Executive Director of the
Premier League, will also
attend the roundtable. He said:
“The Premier League is well aware of the
importance of taking action against plastic pollution, it affects
us all and our fans expect us to do what we can to tackle this
threat. We are here today to learn from others as we develop
our plans to reduce plastic use throughout our
operations.
“We also want to use our reach to fans here
and across the world to spread the word that each and every one
of us can make a difference by choosing to use less
plastic.”
Jointly co-hosted with United Nations
Environment, attendees at the roundtable will also be encouraged
to join the UN’s ‘Clean Seas’ campaign – a global initiative to
reduce plastic pollution in the oceans.
Endurance swimmer Lewis Pugh will
attend in his role as the UN’s Patron of the Oceans. He
said:
“I’ve been swimming for 30 years and can be
under no illusion life in our oceans is under threat like never
before. Beaches across the world are littered with bags, bottles
and straws, and plastic has made its way to some of the most
remote corners of the ocean.
“Single-use plastics have no place in the
modern world and I will be urging sportsmen and women, especially
those involved with ocean sports, to help us share this important
message and be voices for the protection of our oceans.”
This year's World Environment Day on June 5
will focus on the issue of plastic pollution – with UN
Environment working with sports organisations across the world to
take action to address their plastic footprint.
The roundtable comes as just this week the
Prime Minister announced the UK and Vanuatu-led Commonwealth
Clean Oceans Alliance – an agreement between member states to
join forces in the fight against plastic.
Britain, together with joint chair Vanuatu,
will call on other countries to pledge action on plastics, be
this by a ban on microbeads, a commitment to cutting down on
single use plastic bags, or other steps to eliminate avoidable
plastic waste. New Zealand, Sri Lanka and Ghana have already
joined.
To drive this forward, the Prime Minister also
announced a £61.4 million package of funding to boost global
research and help countries across the Commonwealth stop plastic
waste from entering the oceans in the first place.
