来源：《卫报》
原文刊登日期：2022年3月8日
There is no data on global plastic pollution that is equivalent to the regular measurements of carbon dioxide in the Earth’s atmosphere. But as with greenhouse gases, the recent news has been nearly all bad. In 1950, worldwide production of plastics stood at 2m tons per year. In 2020, it was 367m tons. An increase this enormous is hard to visualise. But the 8.8m tons of plastic waste that is estimated to enter the world’s marine environment each year is the equivalent of a rubbish truck filled with plastic being tipped into the sea every minute.
关于全球塑料污染数据，目前还没有与地球大气中二氧化碳的常规测量值类似的指标。但和温室气体一样，最近的消息几乎都是坏消息。1950年，全球塑料产量为200万吨。2020年为3.67亿吨。很难想象如此巨大的增长。但据估计，每年进入世界海洋环境的塑料垃圾量为880万吨，相当于每分钟一卡车的塑料垃圾车被倒入大海。
So the agreement struck by 173 countries at the UN environment assembly last week was a huge relief. At last, something is going to be done multilaterally about a problem that no government can solve on its own. Without the legally binding treaty that will be negotiated over the next two years, it was hard to see where progress would come from.
因此，173个国家上周在联合国环境大会上达成的协议让人松了一口气。最后，我们将以多边方式解决任何一个政府都无法独自解决的问题。如果没有未来两年谈判达成的具有法律约束力的条约，就很难看到会取得什么进展。
The announcement was only the beginning of a long process. As with cutting emissions, fine words about plastics are no use unless they are accompanied by strong actions, including mechanisms to ensure reductions in consumption. Plastic pollution is closely linked to economic growth, and changing our way of life will not be simple. But as a statement of intent, and proof that multilateral cooperation to protect our shared environment is still possible, the agreement is more than welcome. Like global heating, plastic pollution is a matter of social justice issue as well as conservation, with people in poor countries suffering disproportionately.
这一宣布只是一个漫长过程的开始。与减排一样，除非有强有力的行动(包括确保减少消费的机制)，否则有关塑料污染治理的漂亮话是没有用的。塑料污染与经济增长密切相关，改变我们的生活方式并非易事。但是，作为一份意向声明，并证明为保护我们共同的环境而开展多边合作仍是可能的，这项协议非常受欢迎。与全球变暖一样，塑料污染既是一个社会正义问题，也是一个环保问题，贫穷国家的人们受到的影响更大。
As with emissions, the richest countries and companies are the worst culprits. Research for the US federal government last year found that Americans now generate about 42m tonnes of plastic waste a year – more than all European Union member countries combined. Another report found that 20 companies are responsible for producing 55% of the world’s plastic waste. Some are the same companies responsible for fossil fuel production, since plastics are made from petrochemicals.
与碳排放一样，最富裕的国家和公司是罪魁祸首。去年，美国联邦政府的一项研究发现，美国现在每年产生约4200万吨塑料垃圾，超过所有欧盟成员国的总和。另一份报告发现，全球55%的塑料垃圾由20家公司制造。其中一些公司负责化石燃料的生产，因为塑料是由石化产品制成的。
Efforts to clean up the Great Pacific Garbage Patch, and television footage of plastic waste in a seabird’s nest, have imprinted themselves on public consciousness in countries where these reports have been widely seen. But policymakers’ efforts to tackle the plastic problem have been limited to waste management, including the bans on plastic waste imports imposed by some countries, and restrictions in many countries on the sale of single-use plastic items such as bags.
清理大太平洋垃圾带的努力，以及电视上关于海鸟窝里塑料垃圾的画面，已经在这些报道被广泛看到的国家的公众意识中留下了印记。但政策制定者解决塑料问题的努力一直局限于垃圾管理，包括一些国家禁止进口塑料垃圾，以及许多国家限制塑料袋等一次性塑料物品的销售。
Such measures can have localised effects, and influence attitudes and behaviour. But they have not touched the source of the problem: the total amount of plastic waste in the world is predicted to almost quadruple by 2050 and the oil industry is heavily invested in expansion, partly as a means of coping with reduced demand in other areas, as people switch to greener technologies. This has to change. In the words of oceans campaigner Christina Dixon, the “plastics tap must be turned off”.
这些措施可能会产生局部效应，并影响态度和行为。但它们没有触及问题的根源：到2050年，全球塑料垃圾总量预计将增加近四倍，石油行业在扩张方面投入巨资，部分原因是为了应对其他领域需求的减少，因为人们转向了更环保的技术。这必须改变。用海洋活动家克里斯蒂娜·迪克森的话说，“排放塑料的龙头必须关掉”。