Here, Whales Stuff Themselves with Plastic and Then Die

Indonesia Has a Serious Plastic Waste Problem and It's Killing Our Ocean Wildlife. Sign to Demand the Country Takes Action. Sign Now Dear friends, While all countries contribute to our oceans' dire plastic pollution problem, Indonesia is one of the biggest culprits. After China, Indonesia is the largest contributor of plastics to our oceans. The country sends 3.22 million metric tons of the material into our oceans each year alone. That fact became even more apparent after a dead 31-foot sperm whale washed ashore at the Wakatobi National Park in Indonesia. Experts discovered that the whale was stuffed full of plastic debris. All in all, the whale had 115 drinking cups, four plastic bottles, 25 plastic bags and two flip-flops swimming around in its stomach. Scientists can't be sure that the ingested plastic led to its death, but what is certain is that our addiction to plastic is one of the biggest challenges our world faces. In recent years, Indonesia's attempts to curtail plastic use have been "relatively toothless." Their $0.02 plastic bag tax and proposed excise tax against plastic producers have both been discontinued. These policy failures make it highly unlikely the country will meet their goal of reducing plastic waste by 70 percent in less than 10 years. In reality, there is already a model that works. If Indonesia wants to get serious about dumping their plastic addiction, they need to look no further than countries like Kenya and Rwanda, which have banned single-use plastic bags completely. In those countries, breaking the ban can get the offender in real trouble. Serious fines and jail time and have worked so well, they won Kigali — Rwanda's capital — the title of "the cleanest city in Africa." It's time Indonesia takes their plastic problem seriously and follows in the footsteps of leaders like Kenya and Rwanda. Sign the petition to urge Indonesia to implement a complete and total ban on single-use plastics. Thank you for all that you do,   Andrew M. The Care2 Petitions Team P.S. If our oceans die, so will we. Sign the petition.