Earth Day is celebrated on April 22nd every year with the aim of protecting our planet’s natural resources and drawing attention to serious environmental issues we face, from air pollution and deforestation to climate change. Croatia has been observing Earth Day since 1990.
This year’s theme for Earth Day is PLANET AGAINST PLASTIC.
For Earth Day 2024, EARTHDAY.ORG has launched a campaign to eliminate plastic for the well-being of both people and the planet, demanding a 60% reduction in plastic production by 2040. Plastic is not just an ecological problem but also poses a serious threat to human health. Plastic degradation into microplastics releases toxic chemicals that contaminate our food and water sources and circulate through the air we breathe. Plastic production has surged to over 380 million tons annually. In the last decade, more plastic has been produced than in the entire 20th century!
To achieve a 60% reduction by 2040, EARTHDAY.ORG’s goals include:
- promoting broad public awareness of the harm plastic poses to human health, animals, and overall biodiversity and demanding further research into its health implications, including the disclosure of all information regarding its effects to the public;
- faster elimination of all single-use plastics by 2030 and the implementation of a gradual phase-out commitment from the United Nations Plastic Pollution Treaty by 2024;
- robust policies that tackle the scourge of fast fashion and the enormous amounts of plastic it produces and utilizes; and
- investment in innovative technologies and materials to build a world without plastic.
For more information, visit the website https://www.earthday.org/earth-day-2024/
