One Planet: 20 Companies Produce 55% Of The World’s Single-Use Plastic Waste -- Exxon & Dow Top The List

On this edition of Your Call’s One Planet Series, we're discussing the plastic pollution crisis. Eight million metric tons of plastic are flowing into our oceans every year.

Twenty companies are responsible for producing over 50 percent of ‘throwaway’ single-use plastic that ends up as waste, according to the Minderoo Foundation's Plastic Waste Makers Index. ExxonMobil tops the list – contributing 5.9 million tonnes to global plastic waste – closely followed by US chemical company Dow and China’s Sinopec.

Guest:

Judith Enck, visiting professor at Bennington College and President of Beyond Plastics

Web Resources:

Beyond Plastics

NPR: How Big Oil Misled The Public Into Believing Plastic Would Be Recycled

No Plastic Waste: Plastic Waste Makers Index

Unearthed: Inside Exxon’s playbook: How the oil giant works through front groups to head-off regulations on toxic chemicals and plastics