We can’t stop plastic pollution without you
Environmental Action has launched a 50-state campaign to ban foam cups and take-out containers across the country. With your help, we can reduce plastic pollution in the ocean and protect the lives of whales and other wildlife threatened by this trash.
Plastic Pollution’s Growing Threat
In a new study, scientists have discovered a record amount of plastic particles trapped in Arctic sea ice.1 Plastic waste breaks down into these particles, threatening wildlife and the future of our planet.
One of the worst forms of plastic pollution comes from polystyrene foam cups (what most of us call Styrofoam). This foam never fully degrades. Instead, it turns into plastic particles that persist in the environment for centuries.2
Impact on Wildlife
The amount of plastic in our oceans, rivers and lakes is taking a toll on wildlife. This study comes on the heels of a young sperm whale in early April who washed up on a beach in Spain with 64 pounds of human-made trash, including plastic trash bags, in its digestive system.3
This whale isn’t alone — scientists have found plastic in hundreds of species, including in 86 percent of all sea turtle species and 43 percent of all marine mammal species.4 And when animals ingest this waste, it can block their digestive system until they starve to death.
For a bird or fish or turtle, it’s easy to mistake a small piece of plastic for food — especially when there are millions of pieces of plastic floating in the ocean, our rivers and lakes, including some so small we can’t see them.
How You Can Help
We shouldn’t allow our waste to put wildlife at risk. That’s why we’re working to convince governors in states across the country to take the next step and ban the use of plastic foam cups and take-out containers. But to get there, we need the strong support of our members. Will you chip in today?
We need to act now, and we can start by not using plastics that end up in our water in the first place.
Already, more than 15,000 Environmental Action supporters have told their governors to pass a ban on plastic foam. But we can’t stop there.
Help us stand up for wildlife by banning plastic foam. Please support our work today.
1. Matthew Taylor, “Record Levels Of Plastic Discovered In Arctic Sea Ice,” The Guardian, April 24, 2018.
2. “Plastic Marine Debris,” Oceanic and Atmospheric Association Marine Debris Program, September 2011.
3. Kristine Phillips, “A Dead Sperm Whale Was Found With 64 Pounds Of Trash In Its Digestive System,” The Washington Post, April 11, 2018.
4. José G.B Derraik, “The Pollution Of The Marine Environment By Plastic Debris: A Review,” Marine Pollution Bulletin, September 2002