Plastics: Inland Waterways and Rivers

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs written question – answered at on 22 September 2022.

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Photo of Ruth Jones Ruth Jones Shadow Minister (Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent estimate his Department has made of the level of plastic pollution in (a) waterways and (b) rivers in England in the latest period for which data is available.

Photo of Trudy Harrison Trudy Harrison The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

There are no statutory requirements for the Environment Agency to undertake monitoring of plastic pollution in waterways and rivers in England. However, we are making great strides to tackle plastic pollution through the Government's 25 Year Environment Plan which sets out our ambition to eliminate all avoidable plastic waste. We’ve published the Resources and Waste Strategy, which sets out how we want to achieve this and move towards a circular economy, maximising resource efficiency and minimising waste. The plastic problem is one of management not eradication, to reduce, reuse, and recycle the material we have and not let it escape into, and damage, our environment. We are also undertaking research to understand better the nature of pollution from microplastics.

We have made significant progress by introducing one of the world's toughest bans on microbeads in rinse-off personal care products preventing billions of these tiny plastic beads from entering the ocean each year and brought in measures to restrict the supply of plastic straws, plastic drink stirrers, and plastic-stemmed cotton buds. The use of single-use carrier bags has been reduced in the main supermarkets by over 97% since introducing our a 5p and single-use carrier bag charge. In May 2021 we increased the charge to 10p and extended it to all retailers to build on its success to date and create a level playing field for all businesses.

We recently consulted on proposals to ban the supply of single-use plastic plates, cutlery, balloon sticks, and expanded and extruded polystyrene food and drink containers. We are committed to going further and addressing other sources of plastic pollution, which is why we also ran a call for evidence to help us gather information on other problematic plastic items and help inform future policy making. We are particularly interested in wet wipes, tobacco filters, sachets, and other single-use cups. We are currently analysing responses and will provide a further update in due course.

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