DISPOSABLE MASKS AND PLASTIC POLLUTION

Reading a confronting article in the UN News about the environmental impact of COVID19 and the use of disposable masks... Some of the figures are really quite astounding:

• Global sales of disposable masks will total some $166 billion this year, up from around $800 million in 2019.
• If historical data is a reliable indicator, it can be expected that around 75 per cent of the used masks, as well as other pandemic-related waste, will end up in landfills, or floating in the seas.
• Aside from the environmental damage, the financial cost, in areas such as tourism and fisheries, is estimated by the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) at around $40 billion.