June 5, Wolrd Environment Day

Every year more than 400 million tons of plastic are produced worldwide, half of which is intended to be used only once. Of these, less than 10% is recycled. It is estimated that 19-23 million tonnes end up in lakes, rivers and seas every year. This is approximately the weight of 2,200 Eiffel Towers together. Microplastics – tiny plastic particles up to 5mm in diameter – make their way into food, water and air. It is estimated that every person on the planet, even boys and girls, consumes more than 50,000 plastic particles per year, and many more if inhalation is taken into account.

Discarded or burned single-use plastic harms human health and biodiversity and pollutes every ecosystem, from the mountaintops to the ocean floor. The World Environment Day has the objective of making us reflect on this global problem for which we all, from governments, to companies, to the individual citizen, must contribute to finding a solution.