As Alarm Over Plastic Grows, Saudis Ramp up Production in the US
The flares started last December, an event Errol Summerlin, a former legal-aid lawyer, and his neighbors had been bracing for since 2017. After the flames, nipping at the night sky like lashes from a heavenly monster, came the odor, a gnarled concoction of steamed laundry, and burned tires. Thus did the Saudi royal family mark the expansion of its far-flung petrochemical empire to San Patricio County, Texas, a once-rural stretch of flatlands across Nueces Bay from Corpus Christi. It arrived in the form of Gulf Coast Growth Ventures, or GCGV, a plant that sprawls over 16 acres between the towns of Portland and Gregory. The complex contains a circuit board of pipes and steel tanks that cough out steam, flames, and toxic substances as it creates the building blocks for plastic from natural gas liquids.
‘Enough Is Enough’: California Subpoenas Exxonmobil Over Plastic Pollution
California Attorney General Rob Bonta has announced that his department will be undertaking a first-of-its-kind investigation to determine the role that the fossil fuel and petrochemical industries have played in the escalating global plastics crisis. The California Department of Justice is narrowing down on one company in particular: ExxonMobil, a corporation that’s previously been pegged as being the greatest polluter of single-use plastics in the world.
Bottled Water Giant Bluetriton Admits Claims of Recycling and Sustainability Are “Puffery”
In ongoing litigation over the greenwashing of plastic recycling, the bottled water company BlueTriton made a revealing argument: its claims of being environmentally friendly aren’t violations of the law, because they are “aspirational.”
Bill Nye and Coca-Cola Called Out for ‘Greenwashing’
Bill Nye and Coca-Cola are being called out for alleged ‘greenwashing’ in their recent partnership.
How The Fossil Fuel Industry Is Pushing Plastics On The World
CNBC by Katie Brigham | January 29, 2022 | Why oil and gas companies are betting on plastic.
Corps will take closer look at Formosa plant's impact on environment, minority residents in St. James
Construction on an enormous $9.4 billion plastics plant proposed in St. James Parish must be delayed so the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers can do a more extensive and lengthy review of the facility's impacts on the environment and nearby minority communities, a top Army official said Wednesday.
Twenty firms produce 55% of world’s plastic waste, report reveals
Plastic Waste Makers index identifies those driving climate crisis with virgin polymer production.
Shareholders push Amazon to reveal its plastic footprint
A group of shareholders has asked Amazon to disclose how much of its plastic packaging winds up in the environment. The retail giant’s plastic pollution could damage the company’s reputation or lead to financial penalties from regulatory action or clean-up costs, according to the shareholder proposal.
Break Free From Plastic Pollution Act reintroduced, plastics industry ramps up opposition
The bill would ban some single-use plastic products, set recycled content requirements and enact a national EPR program. Critics oppose efforts to suspend permitting for plastic production facilities.
Worn Out: The Fashion Industry's Big Oil Problem
A 2018 study found that textile production releases 1.2 billion metric tons of carbon equivalent greenhouse gases per year, which is more emissions than international flights and maritime shipping combined. And the problem is getting worse.
Plastic is part of the carbon cycle and needs to be included in climate calculations
Plastic pollution and climate change are two prominent environmental issues of our time.
Will Coronavirus Be the Death or Salvation of Big Plastic?
How the coronavirus pandemic has impacted the projections for plastic production.