Plastic Waste (Cont’d from Page 1)
— it has a moral obligation to offer plastic-free packaging to ensure this doesn’t come at a great cost to the health of our oceans and environment.” “The amount of plastic waste generated by the compa- ny is staggering and growing at a frightening rate,” noted Oceana’s Senior Vice President, Matt Littlejohn.“Our study found that the plastic packaging and waste generated by Amazon’s packages is mostly destined, not for recycling, but for the landfill, the incinerator or the environment includ- ing,unfortunately,our waterways and sea,where plastic can harm marine life. It’s time for Amazon to listen to its cus- tomers, who, according to recent surveys want plastic-free alternatives, and make real commitments to reduce its plas- tic footprint.” The report discloses that the type of plastic often used in packaging byAmazon, referred to as plastic film, is effective- ly not recycled, despite the company’s claims of recyclabil- ity. Most municipal curbside recycling programs in Canada, the United States and the United Kingdom do not accept this kind of plastic.The report also found that: • Amazon customers overwhelmingly want the company to reduce plastic packaging. Issues of sustainability remain high in consumers’ minds and it appears the excessive packaging is a concern to them. Oceana surveyed more than 5,000 Amazon customers in Canada, the United States and the UK in 2020 and found that 86 percent were concerned about plastic pollution and its impact on the oceans; 92 percent were upset that plastic recycling does not work; and 87 percent wantedAm- azon and other major online retailers to offer plastic-free packaging choices at checkout. • Unlike other companies seeking to move away from plastic,Amazon appears to be prioritizing the increased use of “flexible packaging” made of plastic. It has stated it uses flexible packaging to help protect the climate and environ- ment, but has not publicly disclosed the data underlying this claim or its plastic footprint. • Amazon has already shown it can rapidly reduce plastic packaging on a very large scale.After India passed a law to fight plastic pollution,Amazon eliminated plastic packaging from fulfillment centers in India and has introduced a pa- per-based lightweight mailer that it reports has been used 100 million times. Amazon has failed to apply these clear steps forward on a company-wide level to solve its plastic problem, the Oceana report states. • Amazon’s plastic waste and pollution footprint is ex- pected to drastically increase, given analysts’ recent esti- mates that the company sales will increase by more than a third in 2020.
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Harris Names New President
HARRIS USA 800.468.5657 229.373.2500 315 W. 12TH AVE.
Richard“DJ”VanDeusen has been named President of The Harris Waste Management Group, Inc., a subsidiary of Avis Industrial Corporation. VanDeusen will be responsible for all aspects of the operation and management of Harris, as well as its global product and service offerings.
CORDELE, GA 31015 www.harrisequip.com
Recycling Markets December 21, 2020 3
www.nvpublications.com
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