PLASTIC pollution and plastic waste cannot be addressed in isolation, says SPREP director general Sefanaia Nawadra.
Speaking at a workshop on National Capacity Building for Plastic Pollution in the Pacific Island Countries in Nadi yesterday Mr Nawadra said the issue needed to be addressed in a holistic and integrated approach.
“We need to remember that plastic pollution and plastic waste cannot be addressed in isolation,” he said.
“It needs to be addressed within the whole context of waste, within the whole context of sustainable consumption and production.
“Addressing the nexus with things like climate change, ocean, looking at trade, looking at health in the environment, trying to identify approaches that help us to really change behaviour.”
Mr Nawadra said people were not really managing natural resources when looking at the plastic issues that we faced.
“We are managing how we as people utilise the things around us.
“I think that is also needed in the future as we work towards addressing plastics.
“So that when we do things, we do things holistically and in an integrated way.
“Too many times in the past we address a certain issue and then we find out we have a bigger issue with wider things that we probably have not considered.”
Plastic pollution and plastic waste cannot be addressed in isolation, says SPREP director general Sefanaia Nawadra. Picture: JONACANI LALAKOBAU
