Greenpeace survey:

Majority want less plastic in everyday life

Plastic pollution in Havana(Bild: Greenpeace/Bente Stachowske)

82 percent of respondents want less plastic to be produced. Even more are in favor of reusable solutions instead of disposable packaging. These are the results of a recent Greenpeace survey conducted among almost 20,000 respondents from 19 countries, including Austria.

The level of agreement from Austria is similarly high. Here, 1000 people were surveyed. They (76 percent) are in favor of completely banning single-use plastic for food, clothing or in the mail order business worldwide. 88 percent also want the switch to reusable packaging to be enshrined in an agreement. According to them, easy availability, a fair price and convenience are the most important factors for the switch.

According to the survey, three quarters are concerned about the potential health risks of plastic. People in the Global South, who are also the most affected by polluted rivers and oceans, are particularly keen to curb the production of plastic. These include the Philippines, Indonesia and Egypt.

"Putting a stop to environmental pollution"
Greenpeace is calling on the responsible Environment Minister Leonore Gewessler (Greens) to work towards a strong agreement. "There are alternatives to single-use plastic, we must use them and finally put a stop to corporate pollution," said Greenpeace spokesperson Jasmin Duregger. A global UN plastics agreement is being negotiated in Canada from April 23 to 29. This is already the fourth round of talks. There is not yet a first draft.

We can only get to grips with the plastic crisis if less plastic is produced.

Greenpeace-Sprecherin Jasmin Duregger

"We can only get the plastic crisis under control if less plastic is produced. The key to this is a strong global plastics agreement that reduces plastic production by 75 percent by 2040," said Duregger.

The survey was conducted by Censuswide on behalf of Greenpeace International. A total of 19,088 people in 19 countries were surveyed.