Rise Above Plastics

2012 Updates

The amount of plastic produced from 2000 - 2010 exceeds the amount produced during the

entire last century

Plastic bags are easy targets because there is an easy solution in reusable bags.

Plastic is the most common type of marine litter worldwide.

Thousands of marine mammals and sea birds die every year after ingesting or being tangled in plastic marine litter.

Even if you think you are doing the right thing by recycling are throwing your waste away properly you need to think about where your recycling goes and what happens at the landfill.

Even if you think you are doing the right thing by recycling are throwing your waste away properly you need to think about where your recycling goes and what happens at the landfill.

Three Main Components of the Rise Above Plastics Program:

Outreach

Education

Legislation

RAP Program Page Views: 10,000+Coastal Blog Readers: 8,000+ Action Alerts 25 / 10,000+ RAP Online Pledge: 3,000+ Media Hits 500+Activists Speaking at Public Hearings: 200+Chapters w/ RAP Program: 60+ Active Campaigns: 20+Coastal Victories: 16 so far in 2012Bag Monsters: 15+

Plastic Sushi PSAFrom

Pollinate

15,ooo+ Facebook

shares, etc.

Immediate: More coastal victories – 20+ active

campaigns Focus on more bag and foam bans Education kit w/ 5 Gyres Tsunami Debris RAPtoberfest in October Practice What We Preach

What’s Next for RAP?

1-3 years: 20 RAP Coastal Victories in 2013 50% bag bans / 50% foam, bottles, butts Coastal Victories on Campus via QUAD More education and awareness efforts Better tracking of beach cleanup statistics

What’s Next for RAP?

3+ years: Business reductions – retail and manufacturing

Extended Producer Responsibility Zero-Waste cities

What actions will have the biggest impact? What can grassroots activists achieve? How can we leverage our resources to best protect the

coast?

What’s Next for RAP?

REFUSE, REDUCE, REUSE, THEN RECYCLE

Final Reminder: we can not recycle our way out of plastic pollution problems.We need more SOURCE REDUCTIONS.