loader image
Become a Member
Member's Area
Careers
Join Our Newsletter
Donate

Single-Use
 Plastics
© Two Oceans Aquarium

Why it matters

Since the 1950s, plastic production has outpaced that of almost every other material. A significant proportion of this plastic is designed for single use, meaning it is used only once before being thrown away, sent to landfill or recycled. However, many single-use plastics are not recyclable or are difficult to recycle, increasing the likelihood that they will end up in the environment.
When plastic waste leaks into the environment, it can cause a wide range of problems for wildlife. Plastic bags and other plastic items have been found blocking the airways and stomachs of terrestrial and aquatic animals. Plastic is also frequently ingested by turtles, marine birds and marine mammals, which can mistake it for food.
More than 11,000,000 metric tons of plastic end up in the oceans every year.
– UNEP

The United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) views the use of single-use plastics as one of the biggest environmental threats of our time (UNEP, 2025). WAZA, together with its members, has a responsibility to take action as both educators and trusted advocates for conservation.

What can Zoos
 and Aquariums do?

Zoos and aquariums are respected and trusted voices for conservation and have a critical role to play in the conservation of biodiversity and wildlife, both in the field and within their own facilities. We strive to educate people on the need to protect ecosystems, including raising awareness of the impact and threats single-use plastics represent to biodiversity.
Zoos and aquariums have both a responsibility and an opportunity to demonstrate their commitment to protecting wildlife and the ecosystems by reducing single-use plastics. The more unified institutions become within their communities and countries, the stronger their message will be to reduce and eliminate single-use plastics from production.
Addressing single-use plastics requires collaboration among operators, vendors, facility managers, and infrastructure developers. Developing an ESMP with a focus on single-use plastics must therefore be done collaboratively within your facility, balancing sustainable operations with revenue realities.
While eliminating single-use plastics is achievable, it may require compromises and can involve financial costs, particularly where food and retail are important sources of revenue. This must serve as a decisive starting point.

Practical
 Actions

1. Audit

Identify where single-use plastics are entering your facility (food service, gift shops, animal care, guest services) and establish a baseline for measuring progress.

2. Collaborate

Engage and work with food, retail and other suppliers to identify realistic alternatives for reducing or eliminating plastics, while balancing revenue needs.

3. Commit

Create an institution-wide policy and set clear objectives, timelines, and responsibilities to ensure all staff and partners are align

4. Enable

Make alternatives easy. Provide refillable stations, appropriate waste infrastructure, and systems that support reusable alternatives.

5. Influence

Work together and collaborate with other zoos, aquariums, and partners to collectively align messaging and to influence suppliers and industry-wide practices.

Build the Case

The following questions provide context and data on the issue of single-use plastics that can be used to help build your case as to why a certain campaign or project within your sustainability work should be launched.

Climate and Emissions

The production and disposal of plastic have significant climate change impacts. Plastic’s carbon footprint comes from several sources:
  • Around 4-8% of global oil consumption is used for plastic production (European Environment Agency)
  • Manufacturing one tonne of plastic generates 2.5 tonnes of CO2 emissions on average (Energy Transitions Commission), in other words the plastics lifecycle accounts for approximately 3.5% of global greenhouse-gas emissions (Gao et al. 2026).
  • Globally, plastic waste incineration which is one of the most common ways of destroying plastic releases approximately 2.7 tonnes of CO2- equivalent per tonne of plastic waste (Tenhunen-Lunkka et al. 2022)
  • Mechanical and chemical recycling produces lower CO2e than virgin plastic production (Judl et al. 2023)
  • Mechanical and chemical recycling produces lower CO2e than virgin plastic production (Judl et al. 2023)
Additionally, plastic pollution in the oceans can have further climate consequences (Shen et al. 2020):
  • Ocean plastics may reduce the ocean's capacity to absorb CO2
  • Microplastic interference affect phytoplankton growth and consequently affects carbon sequestration
To address plastic’s climate impacts, key actions include reducing plastic production and improving recycling rates.
Reducing plastic consumption and waste can deliver significant emissions reductions across the entire lifecycle of plastics. Emission reduction benefits of addressing plastic pollution:
  • Would reduce global greenhouse-gas emissions from manufacturing (Gao et al. 2026).
  • Would avoid an additional 2.7 tonnes of CO2 per tonne of plastic by reducing incineration (Swedish Environmental Protection Agency, 2026)
  • Protects ocean carbon sequestration capacity by preventing plastic pollution that interferes with marine ecosystems (Shen et al. 2020).
  • Reduces emissions associated with plastic waste collection, processing and disposal, particularly where plastic would otherwise be incinerated
In total, addressing the plastic crisis can deliver substantial emissions reductions across manufacturing, transportation, and waste management. This makes it a critical component of any comprehensive climate action strategy.

Biodiversity

Key issues include:
Water Pollution
  • More than 11 million metric tonnes of plastic enter oceans annually, with 85% of marine debris being plastic (UNEP)
  • An estimated average of 150,000 microplastic particles accumulate per every cubic meter of ocean water (Reineccius & Waniek, 2024)
Soil Contamination
  • 110,000 to 730,000 tonnes of plastic accumulate annually in agricultural soils across Europe and North America (Boctor et al. 2025)
Human Health
  • Adults may ingest approximately 50,000 microplastic particles per year (Anik et al. 2025)
Economic Costs
  • Global economic costs reach at least $USD 13 billion for marine damage (UNEP, 2018)
Environmental Injustice
  • OECD countries exported 1.69 million tonnes of plastic waste to non-OECD countries in 2023, representing a 15% increase from 2022 (OECD, 2025)
  • Waste workers in these regions often earn very little per day while facing higher health risks due to lack of personal protective equipment.
The scale and severity of these impacts underscore the urgent need to address the global plastic pollution crisis.
Plastic pollution poses a significant threat to biodiversity across terrestrial and marine ecosystems. However, addressing this crisis can deliver important benefits for the protection and restoration of diverse plant and animal life.
Support for Biodiversity Protection
  • Prevents direct harm to marine life: a 2025 analysis of more than 10,000 marine-animal necropsies found plastic ingestion in 35% of seabirds, 12% of marine mammals and 47% of sea turtles examined (Murphy et al. 2025).
  • Protects soil ecosystems and agricultural biodiversity: microplastics can alter soil physical, chemical and biological properties and affect soil organisms (Boctor et al. 2025).
  • Preserves coral reef health and marine habitat integrity: as the likelihood of coral disease can increase from 4% to 89% when reef-building corals are in contact with plastics (Willis et al. 2018).
  • Maintains food web stability by preventing plastic and associated toxins from bioaccumulating up the food chain.
Addressing the plastic pollution crisis is therefore crucial for safeguarding the health and resilience of ecosystems on land and in the oceans. Reducing plastic waste can have far-reaching benefits for biodiversity conservation.

Natural resource use

Plastic production and disposal place a significant burden on natural resources. The impacts can be seen across raw material extraction, water usage, and land use.
Raw Material Extraction
  • Plastic production primarily requires the extraction of fossil fuels, specifically crude oil and natural gas
  • In 2024, global plastic production exceeded 400 million tonnes (Christodoulou et al. 2026)
Water
  • Some plastics can have water footprints exceeding 200 litres per kilogram for example for PLA (Korol et al. 2019)
Land Use
  • Plastic production can contribute to land-use impacts through fossil-fuel extraction, industrial infrastructure and waste disposal. Bio-based plastics can additionally require agricultural land to produce their biological feedstocks (Escobar & Britz, 2021).
The reliance on finite fossil fuels, the massive water consumption, and the land area needed for waste management demonstrate the unsustainable nature of our current plastic economy. Transitioning away from virgin plastic production and improving recycling and waste management are crucial to reducing the strain on natural resources.
Single-use plastic significantly impacts land use by accumulating in landfills, taking up valuable space, and contaminating soil with microplastics when it breaks down, hindering sustainable development by depleting land resources, harming ecosystems, and potentially impacting food security through soil contamination (Boctor et al. 2025). This also contributes to the need for more land to manage plastic waste, hindering efforts towards sustainable land use practices.
Raw Material Extraction
  • Plastic production primarily requires the extraction of fossil fuels, specifically crude oil and natural gas
  • In 2024, global plastic production exceeded 400 million tonnes (Christodoulou et al. 2026)
Water
  • Some plastics can have water footprints exceeding 200 litres per kilogram for example for PLA (Korol et al. 2019)
Land Use
  • Plastic production can contribute to land-use impacts through fossil-fuel extraction, industrial infrastructure and waste disposal. Bio-based plastics can additionally require agricultural land to produce their biological feedstocks (Escobar & Britz, 2021).
The reliance on finite fossil fuels, the massive water consumption, and the land area needed for waste management demonstrate the unsustainable nature of our current plastic economy. Transitioning away from virgin plastic production and improving recycling and waste management are crucial to reducing the strain on natural resources.

Waste management

Plastic waste poses significant challenges for waste management systems. However, addressing plastic pollution can also yield important benefits:
Landfill Impacts
  • In 2019, nearly half (49%) of global plastic waste was disposed of in sanitary landfills, equivalent to approximately 174 million tonnes (OECD, 2022).
  • Reducing plastic can extend landfill lifespans and decrease associated methane emissions and leachate management needs.
Incineration Impacts
  • Plastic incineration releases approximately 2.7 tonnes of CO2- equivalent per tonne of plastic waste (Tenhunen-Lunkka et al. 2022)
  • Reducing plastic can lower toxic emissions and byproducts from incineration
Waste Collection and Transportation
  • Plastic packaging is lightweight but bulky, meaning waste collection vehicles can reach their volume capacity before their weight capacity. Reducing plastic use can therefore reduce the volume of plastic waste requiring collection and transportation and lower associated energy use.
Recycling Benefits
  • Simplifying recycling processes can boost overall recycling rates
  • Only around 9% of plastic waste is recycled globally, with the global recycling rate remaining largely stagnant (Houssini et al. 2025)
Addressing the plastic pollution crisis therefore has the potential to significantly improve the efficiency, emissions, and sustainability of waste management systems.

Sustainable Procurement

Reducing single-use plastics is considered a key element of sustainable procurement purchasing practices, as it directly contributes to minimising environmental impact by decreasing plastic waste and promoting the use of reusable alternatives.
Key points about reducing single-use plastics in sustainable procurement
  • Environmental impact: Single-use plastics contribute significantly to plastic pollution in landfills and oceans, making their reduction a priority for sustainability efforts.
  • Circular economy: Opting for reusable or recyclable alternatives supports a circular economy where materials are reused instead of discarded after single use.
  • Procurement criteria: prioritise products with minimal single-use plastic packaging.
  • Examples of how to reduce single-use plastics in procurement:
  • Switch to reusable alternatives: Opt for reusable water bottles, coffee mugs, utensils, and containers instead of disposable plastic ones.
  • In one life-cycle assessment, reusable plastic food containers had a lower carbon footprint than single-use containers when reused six or more times (Yadav et al. 2024).
  • Choose products with minimal plastic packaging: Prioritise products with minimal plastic wrapping or opt for bulk options with less packaging.
  • Consider biodegradable options: When necessary, choose single-use plastics that are certified as biodegradable or compostable.
  • Supplier evaluation: Evaluate potential suppliers based on their commitment to reducing single-use plastics in their operations and product packaging.

Finance

Reducing single-use plastics within an organisation can positively impact finances by lowering waste disposal costs, potentially reducing the need to purchase new plastic packaging, and improving brand image, which can lead to increased customer loyalty and potentially higher sales, ultimately contributing to a more sustainable bottom line.
Key ways reducing single-use plastics can save money
  • Waste disposal costs: Less plastic waste means less money spent on waste collection and disposal services.
  • Packaging costs: Switching to reusable or recyclable packaging can lead to lower material costs over time, as you may need to purchase less packaging overall.
  • Operational efficiency: Implementing reusable alternatives within the workplace, like reusable water bottles or coffee cups, can streamline operations and reduce the need for constant replenishment of single-use items.
  • Brand reputation and customer perception: Consumers increasingly value sustainability, so reducing plastic use can enhance a company's brand image and attract environmentally conscious customers.
  • Important considerations:
  • Initial investment: While reusable alternatives may require higher upfront investment, their financial performance depends on factors such as product lifespan, number of reuse cycles, washing, transport and waste-management costs, but long-term savings are likely.
  • Supply chain changes: Evaluating and potentially modifying your supply chain to source sustainable packaging options may be necessary.
  • Consumer education: Depending on the business model, informing customers about the shift to reduce single-use plastics and encouraging them to bring their own reusable items can be crucial.

Engagement and Reporting

Public engagement campaigns aimed at raising awareness about this issue can influence consumer behavior, leading to reduced plastic use and promoting sustainable practices, thereby mitigating environmental impacts of plastics. For example: behavioural interventions, including reminders, social-norm messaging and environmental messaging, have reduced single-use produce-bag use by 9.2–48.7% in experimental research (Luo & Zhao, 2023).
Find examples of public engagement campaigns against single-use plastics from our WAZA Members in Action.
The first step to reducing single-use plastics is to understand where they are being used. Gathering this baseline data is essential for identifying what needs changing, and what can be prioritised and easily modified.
Consequently, once you have this baseline, it is simple to monitor and evaluate throughout the duration of the project where you are finding alternative products or reducing consumption of single-use plastics in your overall operations. Reporting this data and these changes transparently builds trust and inspires others to do the same. It also engages behaviour change and promotes a more sustainable thought process in all stakeholders.

Global Alignment

Kunming-Montreal Global
 Biodiversity Framework

Target 7

Reduce pollution to levels that are not harmful to biodiversity. Preventing, reducing and working towards eliminating plastic pollution.

Target 16

Enable sustainable consumption choices to reduce waste and overconsumption. Encourage sustainable consumption choices and reduce waste generation.

Sustainable Development Goals

Goal 12

Responsible consumption and production.
12.5
By 2030, substantially reduce waste generation through prevention, reduction, recycling and reuse.
12.8
By 2030, ensure that people everywhere have the relevant information and awareness for sustainable development and lifestyles in harmony with nature.
Infographic

WAZA Members in Action

Two Oceans Aquarium

Case study
More cases coming soon

Copenhagen Zoo

Case study

Loro Parque

Case study

Mandai Wildlife Group

Case study

Tierpark Nordhorn

Case study

Columbus Zoo and Aquarium

Case study

Zoos Victoria

Case study

Shedd Aquarium

Case study

South Carolina Aquarium

Case study

Resources

Coming soon
Aquarium Conservation Partnership
Environmental sustainability is an evolving field, and we can achieve more by learning from one another. By sharing knowledge, insights and best practices, WAZA members can help keep these resources relevant and reflect new developments in science, innovation and technology.
Have an example or resource to share for our Single-use Plastics focus area?

Download our case study template and send us your work to conservation@waza.org

Download

Build the Case

The following questions provide context and data on the issue of single-use plastics that can be used to help build your case as to why a certain campaign or project within your sustainability work should be launched.

Climate and Emissions

The production and disposal of plastic have significant climate change impacts. Plastic’s carbon footprint comes from several sources:
  • Around 4-8% of global oil consumption is used for plastic production (European Environment Agency)
  • Manufacturing one tonne of plastic generates 2.5 tonnes of CO2 emissions on average (Energy Transitions Commission), in other words the plastics lifecycle accounts for approximately 3.5% of global greenhouse-gas emissions (Gao et al. 2026).
  • Globally, plastic waste incineration which is one of the most common ways of destroying plastic releases approximately 2.7 tonnes of CO2- equivalent per tonne of plastic waste (Tenhunen-Lunkka et al. 2022)
  • Mechanical and chemical recycling produces lower CO2e than virgin plastic production (Judl et al. 2023)
  • Mechanical and chemical recycling produces lower CO2e than virgin plastic production (Judl et al. 2023)
Additionally, plastic pollution in the oceans can have further climate consequences (Shen et al. 2020):
  • Ocean plastics may reduce the ocean's capacity to absorb CO2
  • Microplastic interference affect phytoplankton growth and consequently affects carbon sequestration
To address plastic’s climate impacts, key actions include reducing plastic production and improving recycling rates.
Reducing plastic consumption and waste can deliver significant emissions reductions across the entire lifecycle of plastics. Emission reduction benefits of addressing plastic pollution:
  • Would reduce global greenhouse-gas emissions from manufacturing (Gao et al. 2026).
  • Would avoid an additional 2.7 tonnes of CO2 per tonne of plastic by reducing incineration (Swedish Environmental Protection Agency, 2026)
  • Protects ocean carbon sequestration capacity by preventing plastic pollution that interferes with marine ecosystems (Shen et al. 2020).
  • Reduces emissions associated with plastic waste collection, processing and disposal, particularly where plastic would otherwise be incinerated
In total, addressing the plastic crisis can deliver substantial emissions reductions across manufacturing, transportation, and waste management. This makes it a critical component of any comprehensive climate action strategy.

Biodiversity

Key issues include:
Water Pollution
  • More than 11 million metric tonnes of plastic enter oceans annually, with 85% of marine debris being plastic (UNEP)
  • An estimated average of 150,000 microplastic particles accumulate per every cubic meter of ocean water (Reineccius & Waniek, 2024)
Soil Contamination
  • 110,000 to 730,000 tonnes of plastic accumulate annually in agricultural soils across Europe and North America (Boctor et al. 2025)
Human Health
  • Adults may ingest approximately 50,000 microplastic particles per year (Anik et al. 2025)
Economic Costs
  • Global economic costs reach at least $USD 13 billion for marine damage (UNEP, 2018)
Environmental Injustice
  • OECD countries exported 1.69 million tonnes of plastic waste to non-OECD countries in 2023, representing a 15% increase from 2022 (OECD, 2025)
  • Waste workers in these regions often earn very little per day while facing higher health risks due to lack of personal protective equipment.
The scale and severity of these impacts underscore the urgent need to address the global plastic pollution crisis.
Plastic pollution poses a significant threat to biodiversity across terrestrial and marine ecosystems. However, addressing this crisis can deliver important benefits for the protection and restoration of diverse plant and animal life.
Support for Biodiversity Protection
  • Prevents direct harm to marine life: a 2025 analysis of more than 10,000 marine-animal necropsies found plastic ingestion in 35% of seabirds, 12% of marine mammals and 47% of sea turtles examined (Murphy et al. 2025).
  • Protects soil ecosystems and agricultural biodiversity: microplastics can alter soil physical, chemical and biological properties and affect soil organisms (Boctor et al. 2025).
  • Preserves coral reef health and marine habitat integrity: as the likelihood of coral disease can increase from 4% to 89% when reef-building corals are in contact with plastics (Willis et al. 2018).
  • Maintains food web stability by preventing plastic and associated toxins from bioaccumulating up the food chain.
Addressing the plastic pollution crisis is therefore crucial for safeguarding the health and resilience of ecosystems on land and in the oceans. Reducing plastic waste can have far-reaching benefits for biodiversity conservation.

Natural resource use

Plastic production and disposal place a significant burden on natural resources. The impacts can be seen across raw material extraction, water usage, and land use.
Raw Material Extraction
  • Plastic production primarily requires the extraction of fossil fuels, specifically crude oil and natural gas
  • In 2024, global plastic production exceeded 400 million tonnes (Christodoulou et al. 2026)
Water
  • Some plastics can have water footprints exceeding 200 litres per kilogram for example for PLA (Korol et al. 2019)
Land Use
  • Plastic production can contribute to land-use impacts through fossil-fuel extraction, industrial infrastructure and waste disposal. Bio-based plastics can additionally require agricultural land to produce their biological feedstocks (Escobar & Britz, 2021).
The reliance on finite fossil fuels, the massive water consumption, and the land area needed for waste management demonstrate the unsustainable nature of our current plastic economy. Transitioning away from virgin plastic production and improving recycling and waste management are crucial to reducing the strain on natural resources.
Single-use plastic significantly impacts land use by accumulating in landfills, taking up valuable space, and contaminating soil with microplastics when it breaks down, hindering sustainable development by depleting land resources, harming ecosystems, and potentially impacting food security through soil contamination (Boctor et al. 2025). This also contributes to the need for more land to manage plastic waste, hindering efforts towards sustainable land use practices.
Raw Material Extraction
  • Plastic production primarily requires the extraction of fossil fuels, specifically crude oil and natural gas
  • In 2024, global plastic production exceeded 400 million tonnes (Christodoulou et al. 2026)
Water
  • Some plastics can have water footprints exceeding 200 litres per kilogram for example for PLA (Korol et al. 2019)
Land Use
  • Plastic production can contribute to land-use impacts through fossil-fuel extraction, industrial infrastructure and waste disposal. Bio-based plastics can additionally require agricultural land to produce their biological feedstocks (Escobar & Britz, 2021).
The reliance on finite fossil fuels, the massive water consumption, and the land area needed for waste management demonstrate the unsustainable nature of our current plastic economy. Transitioning away from virgin plastic production and improving recycling and waste management are crucial to reducing the strain on natural resources.

Waste management

Plastic waste poses significant challenges for waste management systems. However, addressing plastic pollution can also yield important benefits:
Landfill Impacts
  • In 2019, nearly half (49%) of global plastic waste was disposed of in sanitary landfills, equivalent to approximately 174 million tonnes (OECD, 2022).
  • Reducing plastic can extend landfill lifespans and decrease associated methane emissions and leachate management needs.
Incineration Impacts
  • Plastic incineration releases approximately 2.7 tonnes of CO2- equivalent per tonne of plastic waste (Tenhunen-Lunkka et al. 2022)
  • Reducing plastic can lower toxic emissions and byproducts from incineration
Waste Collection and Transportation
  • Plastic packaging is lightweight but bulky, meaning waste collection vehicles can reach their volume capacity before their weight capacity. Reducing plastic use can therefore reduce the volume of plastic waste requiring collection and transportation and lower associated energy use.
Recycling Benefits
  • Simplifying recycling processes can boost overall recycling rates
  • Only around 9% of plastic waste is recycled globally, with the global recycling rate remaining largely stagnant (Houssini et al. 2025)
Addressing the plastic pollution crisis therefore has the potential to significantly improve the efficiency, emissions, and sustainability of waste management systems.

Sustainable Procurement

Reducing single-use plastics is considered a key element of sustainable procurement purchasing practices, as it directly contributes to minimising environmental impact by decreasing plastic waste and promoting the use of reusable alternatives.
Key points about reducing single-use plastics in sustainable procurement
  • Environmental impact: Single-use plastics contribute significantly to plastic pollution in landfills and oceans, making their reduction a priority for sustainability efforts.
  • Circular economy: Opting for reusable or recyclable alternatives supports a circular economy where materials are reused instead of discarded after single use.
  • Procurement criteria: prioritise products with minimal single-use plastic packaging.
  • Examples of how to reduce single-use plastics in procurement:
  • Switch to reusable alternatives: Opt for reusable water bottles, coffee mugs, utensils, and containers instead of disposable plastic ones.
  • In one life-cycle assessment, reusable plastic food containers had a lower carbon footprint than single-use containers when reused six or more times (Yadav et al. 2024).
  • Choose products with minimal plastic packaging: Prioritise products with minimal plastic wrapping or opt for bulk options with less packaging.
  • Consider biodegradable options: When necessary, choose single-use plastics that are certified as biodegradable or compostable.
  • Supplier evaluation: Evaluate potential suppliers based on their commitment to reducing single-use plastics in their operations and product packaging.

Finance

Reducing single-use plastics within an organisation can positively impact finances by lowering waste disposal costs, potentially reducing the need to purchase new plastic packaging, and improving brand image, which can lead to increased customer loyalty and potentially higher sales, ultimately contributing to a more sustainable bottom line.
Key ways reducing single-use plastics can save money
  • Waste disposal costs: Less plastic waste means less money spent on waste collection and disposal services.
  • Packaging costs: Switching to reusable or recyclable packaging can lead to lower material costs over time, as you may need to purchase less packaging overall.
  • Operational efficiency: Implementing reusable alternatives within the workplace, like reusable water bottles or coffee cups, can streamline operations and reduce the need for constant replenishment of single-use items.
  • Brand reputation and customer perception: Consumers increasingly value sustainability, so reducing plastic use can enhance a company's brand image and attract environmentally conscious customers.
  • Important considerations:
  • Initial investment: While reusable alternatives may require higher upfront investment, their financial performance depends on factors such as product lifespan, number of reuse cycles, washing, transport and waste-management costs, but long-term savings are likely.
  • Supply chain changes: Evaluating and potentially modifying your supply chain to source sustainable packaging options may be necessary.
  • Consumer education: Depending on the business model, informing customers about the shift to reduce single-use plastics and encouraging them to bring their own reusable items can be crucial.

Engagement and Reporting

Public engagement campaigns aimed at raising awareness about this issue can influence consumer behavior, leading to reduced plastic use and promoting sustainable practices, thereby mitigating environmental impacts of plastics. For example: behavioural interventions, including reminders, social-norm messaging and environmental messaging, have reduced single-use produce-bag use by 9.2–48.7% in experimental research (Luo & Zhao, 2023).
Find examples of public engagement campaigns against single-use plastics from our WAZA Members in Action.
The first step to reducing single-use plastics is to understand where they are being used. Gathering this baseline data is essential for identifying what needs changing, and what can be prioritised and easily modified.
Consequently, once you have this baseline, it is simple to monitor and evaluate throughout the duration of the project where you are finding alternative products or reducing consumption of single-use plastics in your overall operations. Reporting this data and these changes transparently builds trust and inspires others to do the same. It also engages behaviour change and promotes a more sustainable thought process in all stakeholders.