As many Canadians know by now, the Trudeau government has declared war on plastic waste, as part of the larger “net zero” greenhouse gas emissions plan launched in 2020.
And yet, the government’s own research (you know, the science) shows Canada doesn’t have a significant problem with plastic waste — 99% of plastics flowing through Canada’s economy to disposal find their final resting place in landfills, are recycled or (a small fraction) burned to generate energy. Only about 1% of plastics that flow through the Canadian economy ever contaminate the environment.
Moreover, by the government’s own accounting, the net-zero plastics campaign will cost more than it will save in waste-management costs, and it will likely cause more environmental harm — not less — due to the adoption of more environmentally harmful alternatives. And Ottawa’s plastics plan is not so much about reducing plastic waste but rather about shifting the end-point destination — that is, diverting plastics currently headed for landfills into recycling programs.
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