Trudeau announces plan to ban single-use plastics as early as 2021

Ottawa has announced its plan to ban single-use plastics in Canada as early as 2021.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau made the announcement Monday at a nature reserve in Mont St-Hilaire, just south of Montreal.

The details of which products will be banned is not expected to be released immediately but rather when the government looks at the empirical evidence and do their own research to determine which products should be outlawed.

The products could include items such as straws, water bottles, plastic bags, cutlery, stir sticks, and fast food containers.

It’s not known how the ban will be implemented.

Trudeau says the situation of plastic overflowing in landfills and polluting waters has reached a breaking point. Millions of tonnes of plastic waste end up in oceans each year.

Less than 10 per cent of plastic used in Canada gets recycled. If the trend continues, Canadians will be throwing out $11 billion worth of plastic products by 2030.

Watch live: Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announces Canada is taking additional steps to reduce Canada’s plastic waste, support innovation, and promote the use of affordable and safe alternatives. //t.co/2lwqsDSrca pic.twitter.com/rn0KuPP6ZD

— CanadianPM (@CanadianPM) June 10, 2019