In 2019 more than 130 million metric tons of plastic was used just once and then discarded. ExxonMobil, the report concludes, was responsible for creating 5.9 million tons of that single-use plastic waste in 2019, with Dow right behind it, generating 5.6 million tons that year.
ExxonMobil, Dow, Barclays, and more top lists in a new report ranking the companies behind the single-use plastic crisis.
By Sharon Kelly
Global Research, May 21, 2021DeSmog 18 May 2021
ExxonMobil is the world’s single largest producer of single-use plastics, according to anew reportpublished today by the Australia-basedMinderoo Foundation, one of Asia’s biggest philanthropies.
The Dow Chemical Company ranks second, the report finds, with the Chinese state-owned company Sinopec coming in third. Indorama Ventures — a Thai company thatenteredthe plastics market in 1995 — and Saudi Aramco, owned by the Saudi Arabian government, round out the top five.
Funding for single-use plastic production comes from major banks and from institutional asset managers. The UK-based Barclays and HSBC, and Bank of America are the top three lenders to single-use plastic projects, the new report finds. All three of the most heavily invested asset managers…
View original post 1,736 more words
The Most Revolutionary Act 
Pingback: Who’s Making — and Funding — the World’s Plastic Trash? — The Most Revolutionary Act | Vermont Folk Troth
I’m glad attention is being focused on single-use plastic, which has long been one of my greatest environmental concerns. However, the article does not give a single example of what constitutes “single-use” plastic, so I thought it over and decided plastic packaging may be the best example I know. It is ubiquitous on food items in the grocery stores, and in any products packaged for shipping. I guess the styrofoam that comes with any new electronic gadget counts as single-use, too.
While the article targets the manufacturers and the banks that fund these producers, I believe it’s also important for individuals to recognize how single-use plastic is flooding our homes, garbage cans, landfills, and oceans. Most of the trash I generate consists of packaging, so I make a conscious effort to minimize purchase of heavily packaged items.
It’s almost impossible to avoid single-use or any other plastic, these days, but it’s fun to try.
LikeLiked by 1 person