Question Period Note: Federal Government Action on Plastic Waste and Pollution

The Government of Canada is delivering an evidence-based, comprehensive plan to tackle plastic waste and pollution and move towards a circular economy for plastics.

• The science is clear: plastic pollution is everywhere in the environment, harming wildlife and damaging their habitats and burdening Canadian communities that bear the cost of dealing with plastic waste and pollution.
• Canadians are concerned about the health and environmental impacts of plastics and expect governments to take action to address plastic pollution. Plastics also provide us with an opportunity. An area where we can innovate, where we can support new technologies and grow new industry.
• The Government of Canada will continue to address pollution, protect Canadians’ health and environment, and promote clean, sustainable growth while working with domestic and international partners to keep plastics in the economy, and out of the environment.

· Due to their low cost, high functionality, lightweight and versatile properties, plastics are an important element of the Canadian economy, representing an over $35 billion plastic production industry and a $540M recycling industry. Plastics are a part of nearly every sector of the economy, and they are a part of the daily lives of Canadians.
· However, plastics function in a linear, take-make-dispose, economy. Plastics are generally made and used for their one intended purpose and are then disposed of as waste. In Canada, almost 5 million tonnes of plastic waste is produced annually, and only roughly 7 percent is recycled. The rest ends up in landfills, incinerators or is released as pollution and impacts Canadian beaches, rivers, parks and oceans, harming wildlife and damaging habitats, burdening communities, and represents a significant lost economic opportunity estimated to be worth nearly $8B in 2016, and this value could reach $11 billion by 2030.
· The issues are the same at the global level. Global plastic production and waste is set to triple by 2060, with plastic pollution projected to grow 2.5 times from 2015 levels by 2040. Internationally, the world has recognized the urgent need to address this problem. Work is underway to develop a new international legally binding instrument on plastic pollution that addresses the full lifecycle of plastics with the aim of concluding negotiations in 2025.
· Canada is working with its partners to implement an evidence-based and comprehensive plan to reduce plastic waste and pollution and move towards a circular plastics economy through a range of complementary actions across the plastics lifecycle.
· Improving how plastics are made, used and managed is important to prevent plastic pollution and waste, build economic opportunities, recuperate lost value, create jobs, spur innovation and drive investment by governments and businesses.

Non-applicable