公害ジャーナル

Marine plastic waste pollution is a prominent example of the extensive damage that the continued expansion of resource consumption is causing to the environment. Each year, humanity generates 300 million tons of plastic waste worldwide, of which approximately 11 million tons enter the oceans, posing a threat to marine species and ecosystems, affecting human activities and health, and costing marine ecosystems at least $13 billion. By 2050, the weight of plastic waste in the ocean will surpass that of all fish if there is no management, and the amount of plastic waste that leaks into the ocean will triple by 2040. Along with the loss of biodiversity and the warming of the climate, marine plastic pollution is now a global issue that must be resolved. Global cooperation is required for marine plastic waste governance because of important characteristics like the relevance of the ecosystem, the mobility of sea water, the ambiguity of the governance boundary, and the complexity of governance. To treat marine plastic waste, all parties must actively act. More than sixty nations have already established governance goals and enacted relevant legislation. The "Blue Ocean Vision" initiative to achieve "zero emissions" of marine plastic waste by 2050 is adopted at the G20 Osaka Summit in 2019. The "Clean Seas" campaign was launched by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) to find ways to reduce marine waste, and 63 nations have signed on. The "New Plastics Economy" global commitment, which has 400 signatories, was established by the Ellen MacArthur Foundation (EMF) and UNEP to promote the development of a plastics circular economy. The "Net Plastic Nature 2030" initiative, which aims to speed up the transition to a circular economy and improve the framework for global governance, was also proposed by the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF). These actions set the stage and serve as an example of cooperation in the fight against marine plastic waste. In general, it is both necessary and attainable to cooperate in the management of marine plastic waste.