Gosh in 2013 the E.U.  realised that

“Dozens of millions of tonnes of plastic debris end up floating in world oceans broken into microplastic, the so-called plastic soup. Microplastics are found in the most remote parts of our oceans. Entanglement of turtles by floating plastic bags, sea mammals and birds that die from eating plastic debris and ghost fishing through derelict fishing gear produce shocking pictures. Moreover, plastic is not inert and chemical additives, some of them endocrine disruptors, can migrate into body tissue and enter the food chain.

The massive pollution of world oceans with plastic debris is therefore emerging as a global challenge that requires a global response. The European Union should be a showcase for how to build a coherent strategy to optimize plastic waste policy.

A second challenge is linked to resources conservation. Nearly 50% of plastic waste in the EU is still landfilled. Therefore, much energy and processed raw material is lost instead of being recycled into new products.

Until now there is no comprehensive policy response to such challenges.” Eye roll!

“Specific aspects are addressed in various pieces of legislation, like the Waste Framework Directive with its 2015 separate plastic waste collection target or its 50% household waste collection target by 2020. The Packaging and Packaging waste Directive also has a specific plastic waste target.

Since there is an obvious and urgent need to take a focused and strategic approach towards plastic waste management as well as plastic product management, we are launching the consultation on the “Green Paper on a European Strategy on Plastic Waste in the Environment”. This should be the start of a broad public reflection on possible responses to all public policy challenges posed by plastic waste and which are presently not specifically or not effectively addressed in European waste legislation.”

Rather late to the party guys but at least you showed up…. lets see what you got. You can read their report here.