Turn Off the Tap
When it comes to educating others about the difference between real and what are called “false solutions,” there are few metaphors that will prove more useful than the one that equates the plastic pollution crisis to a flooded bathroom, within which a tub overfilled by a tap running full blast is the obvious cause of the problem.
No one in their right mind would come upon that scene and run off to grab a mop. They wouldn’t look around for a cup so they can start bailing. They wouldn’t go fetch a hose, stick one end in the tub, suck on the other end until they created enough suction to siphon water from the tub into the toilet and then stand there flushing the toilet when that got too full.
No one in their right mind would do any of that. The very first thing they would do is turn off the tap.
And yet, when it comes to plastic pollution, most of the proposed solutions (many of them coming from intelligent people who ought to know better) are on a par with the ridiculously useless reactions described above.
With calls for dangerously misguided strategies like recycling plastic items we don’t need in the first place on the rise, those of us who understand that reducing plastic consumption is the only way to effectively reduce plastic pollution find ourselves in increasing need of catchy phrases and clever examples to expose false solutions. I can tell you from experience, “turn off the tap” is an effective way to both elicit an “aha” moment in well meaning folk and silence the corrupt individuals who, in seeking to justify their plastic-dependent business models, perpetuate myths regarding the environmental benefits of plastic recycling.
If we want to end plastic pollution, we need to stop making so much plastic in the first place. This means focusing on unnecessary uses (with single-use beverage containers and toys two prime examples) and abandoning those uses as expeditiously as possible.
As Play Without Plastics members, our combined impact on global demand for virgin plastic grows which each new pledge made, and while this simple act taken together represents an inspired and responsible example of turning off the tap, we must also stand firm in opposition to the false promise of toys made with recycled plastic. The companies that make toys from recycled plastic depend on the virgin plastic supply chain, and since plastic is not infinitely recyclable, when your child is done with that toy, it will either end up in a landfill or an. incinerator or get made into polyester clothing, which, when cleaned, will shed microplastic particles into water discharge systems or send them into the air via dryer vents.
The United Nations Environmental Program, which is leading the way on the development of a global treaty to end plastic pollution, estimates that a full 75%-reduction in plastic consumption is needed if we are to end the scourge of plastic pollution. We will not get there by mopping the floor that surrounds the overflowing tub. To protect our children, to save our planet and the myriad creatures that share it with us, we need to turn of the tap that is flooding our economy and environment with plastic we don’t need. . . the sooner the better.