Gopee-Scoon: Consumers must reduce plastic waste

By Paula Lindo of Newsday

Solid Waste Management Co Ltd CEO Kevin Thompson points to compressed plastic bottles at the company's recycling warehouse in Sea Lots, Port of Spain. Photo by Roger Jacob

Plastics make up 19 per cent of all landfill waste and eight of ten items collected on beaches in TT. On World Consumer Rights Day, celebrated on Monday, Trade and Industry Minister Paula Gopee-Scoon reminded consumers to be responsible for making purchases that contribute to plastic waste.

In a statement, Gopee-Scoon said the fight toward sustainability is, at its foundation, an individual effort.

“Hence, it requires each of us to make a more conscious effort in being a sustainable consumer to minimise waste in our daily routines. Responsible individuals create responsible families, responsible families create sustainable communities, and sustainable communities create a sustainable nation.”

The theme of World Consumer Rights Day 2021 was Tackling Plastic Pollution. The Ministry of Trade and Industry hosted a webinar on the topic in conjunction with the Consumer Affairs Division of the Ministry of Planning and Development, the Tobago House of Assembly and the TT Manufacturers' Association (TTMA).

Waste management specialist at the Ministry of Planning and Development Keima Gardiner said there were two conventions TT had signed on to with respect to plastics. These were the Basel Convention, which deals with the shipment of contaminated plastic waste and the partnership on plastic waste to improve and promote the environmentally sound management of plastic waste at the global, regional and national levels. The other is the Stockholm Convention on the persistent organic pollutant.