April 22 marked Earth Day. What began as a one-off environmentalist demonstration across schools and colleges within the US back in 1970, has now evolved into an annual celebration observed the world over. People come together to boost awareness of the worldwide environmental issues we face, from the climate crisis to biodiversity loss, and commit to taking collective motion to guard our planet.
This yr’s theme was Planet vs Plastics and the aim was to ‘unite students, parents, businesses, governments, churches, unions, individuals, and NGOs in an unwavering commitment to call for the tip of plastics for the sake of human and planetary health, demanding a 60% reduction within the production of plastics by 2040.’
Plastic pollution has concerning implications for the health of our ecosystems and ourselves, and additionally it is intrinsically linked to the impacts of the climate crisis. Firstly, plastic is made out of oil and is the fastest growing source of commercial greenhouse gas emissions. Then since 2 billion people, 1 in 4, don’t have any protected technique to get rid of rubbish, plastic often either finally ends up blocking up drains and waterways, making increasingly frequent flooding worse, or getting burnt, producing further pollution and carbon emissions. This is in response to Tearfund, who say that being forced to live alongside these mountains of rubbish, taking within the toxic fumes and contaminated water, causes as much as 1 million deaths every year.
Plastic pollution is a matter of injustice.
Closer to home, even the long-lasting landscapes of the Lake District have been found to be contaminated with microplastics by researchers, and there are concerns that increased inland flooding will mean that these plastics reach the oceans in greater volumes, impacting marine ecosystems.
It’s been a long time now since that first Earth Day in 1970, and despite the environmental movement’s efforts and achievements, we must acknowledge that we’ve got not done enough to totally prevent the ecological crisis. How did we get here? When did we lose sight of our responsibility to look after God’s creation, and for our neighbours, whether near or far?
Perhaps you have tried to cut back your personal use of single-use plastic, at all times remembering to hold your reusable shopping bags or coffee cup. Maybe you have gone on litter picks in your neighbourhood and make certain to sort your recycling properly. But in today’s world, driven by convenience and never-ending consumption, it’ll take a much bigger shift in our attitudes and systems to properly address this problem.
As Christians, we understand that we live in a fallen world, and so sin is unavoidable. It’s simply impossible for a lot of us to live completely plastic free lives. And with plastic being found from the large Great Pacific Garbage Patch in the course of the ocean, to inside our very bodies, it could be overwhelming to know where to begin.
Hannah Malcolm writes within the book, Words for a Dying World, ”As far because the East is from the West, thus far has God removed our sin from us’, the Psalmist guarantees. But what if our sin has infiltrated every corner of the Earth? Where will our sins go now?’
Our response starts with grief. In the spirit of Earth Day, let’s reflect on how we, especially those of us within the West, have made an idol of convenience on the expense of the planet and people who God loves, and the very real suffering that has caused. Maybe take a while to be in nature and thank God for creation.
And as we repent, we will turn to motion, trusting in God’s promise to remove our sin from us and to redeem all things, even on this time when environmentally, things seem broken beyond repair.
There’s a reason the aim for this yr’s Earth Day referred to each governments and churches as those that must commit to ending plastic production. We can work along with those in our church communities, local government, and even on national and international levels.
Pray that God would uplift the voices of those most affected by plastic pollution, in order that they will likely be heard by those in power. Psalm 113:7-8 says, ‘He lifts the poor from the dust and the needy from the rubbish dump. He sets them amongst princes, even the princes of his own people!’ Ask others in your church to jot down to your political representatives and pray for them as you urge them to call for daring, decisive, urgent motion.
And we will also be daring in sharing our reasons for caring so deeply for people and planet, pointing to the instance of the self-sacrificial love of God for creation, and the singular hope we discover within the promise of abundant life beyond death/even in probably the most rubbish of situations (sorry, couldn’t throw away the chance!).
