George Orwell would possibly have cracked a sardonic smile knowing that his small classic Animal Farm had its 80th anniversary just as the United Nations Conference on Plastic Pollution failed to come to an agreement. It’s clear that some countries are more equal than others.
Plastics are made from a chemical process binding small molecules called monomers, derived from fossil fuels, into large chains called polymers, often involving toxic chemicals. Major oil producing states opposed a treaty limiting the use of toxins in the process and encouraging the use of renewables. Oil money is more equal than …
As important as they are, beach cleaning projects represent a drop in the bucket when you compare it to the plastic junk we’ve deposited in the ocean. And it’s not just the bottle caps, swallowed by fish or turtles; it’s the chemical toxins seeping out slowly as well. But who cares about a few turtles when there’s money to be made?
Prayer for the Day
Unfolding God who comes to us through wind and rain,
Who removes the film of blindness from our eyes;
Redeeming God, who comes to in the silence of the night,
Who opens our senses to the world all around;
Seal your truth into the center of our bodies,
Shape us and mold us into your vessel,
In the name of the One who walked along the seashore,
Even Christ Jesus our Lord, Amen
Thoughts for the Day
For our islands this means that without global cooperation and state action, millions of tonnes of plastic waste will continue to be dumped in our oceans, affecting our ecosystem, food security, livelihood and culture.
Tuvalu, speaking for 14 countries in Oceasna
The negotiations were consistently blocked by a small number of states who simply don’t want an agreement.
Sebastian Rodriguez, delegate from Colombia
In the beginning when God created the heavens and the earth,
The earth was a formless void and darkness covered the face of the deep,
While a wind from God swept over the face of the waters.
Genesis 1:1-2