CANADA – The Chemistry Industry Association of Canada (CIAC) has launched a three-year ‘Save Plastic’ campaign, aimed at promoting plastic as a valuable resource that—when managed responsibly—is essential for a modern, sustainable way of life.
The campaign comes amid imminent challenges from the Canadian government’s move to ban certain plastic products and label plastic as “toxic.”
In an interview with ICIS, Bob Masterson, President and CEO of CIAC, said that plastics are playing and will continue to play a key role in decarbonizing the economy through uses in clean energy, the automotive sector, reducing food waste and many other applications.
The Chemistry Industry Association of Canada (CIAC) speaks for both the chemical and the plastics industry in Canada.
With its awareness-raising campaign, the industry seeks to encourage Canadians to consider a different perspective on plastic, using evidence-based information.
“It’s about repackaging the conversation around plastics, and making it more complete,” added Masterson, explaining plastic’s benefits while countering negative publicity and addressing concerns about plastic waste.
The campaign aims to reposition the conversation in the long-term but is not meant as a direct response to the imminent challenges in Canada, Masterson said.
While the Canadian government decisions on product bans and labeling have been made, “the road ahead is only going to be more difficult if there isn’t better information and a better understanding about the role of plastics,” he said.
Masterson notes that the campaign is not meant to distract from the challenges of plastic waste and litter – just the opposite.
“Those issues are very much front and center, the industry has to work to address those issues,” he added. “We can ensure plastics are seen as a renewable resource that never reaches the landfill.”
By saving plastics from landfills, Canada’s chemical and plastic industry can recover a valuable resource that will allow it to meet up to 60% of plastic demand by 2050 with recycled plastics, he said.
According to a government-commissioned study, almost C$8 billion (US$6 billion) worth of plastic sent to landfill could be recuperated into the economy through better collection and recycling.
According to the study, Canada’s plastics economy is mostly “linear,” rather than “circular.”
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