Congratulations to our MP Gord Johns
and his team of Ocean Defenders

With all the full and busy times of the December holiday season, we neglected to officially mark and celebrate one of the most important initiatives of 2018. Our MP Gord Johns’ Parliamentary Motion M151 was passed unanimously in Parliament on December 22, 2018 by a vote of 288 to 0. This achievement is unprecedented for a first term opposition MP. Gord is a true protector of our country’s oceans and environment.

M151: A National Strategy to Combat Plastic Pollution

The motion to the House of Commons aims to:

  • Create a permanent, dedicated, and annual funding for community led clean-up projects
  • Reduce and regulate consumer and industrial use of ‘single-use’ plastics
  • Create a plan to clean-up derelict fishing gear
  • Promote education and outreach campaigns on the root causes and negative environmental effects of plastic pollution
  • Extend producer responsibility
  • Address the root problem and redesign the plastic economy

Mr. Johns began to work with local environmental champions on the challenge of marine debris and ocean plastics right from the start of his term in office. This goal intensified in 2018 when he began working with 40 different allies, including U. of Victoria Environmental Law, the Vancouver Aquarium, Ocean Legacy, ADIMS and a wide range of environmental advocates in his riding. After he initially presented his motion in parliament, on November 2, 2018, he had to “fend off” daily visits from lobbyists from the plastics and packaging industry. He stood firm, and Paliament approved his motion.


Text of Motion M151

—That, in the opinion of the House, the government should work with the provinces, municipalities, and indigenous communities to develop a national strategy to combat plastic pollution in and around aquatic environments, which would include the following measures:

(a) regulations aimed at reducing
(i) plastic debris discharge from stormwater outfalls,
(ii) industrial use of micro-plastics including, but not limited to, microbeads, nurdles, fibrous microplastics and fragments,
(iii) consumer and industrial use of single use plastics, including, but not limited to, plastic bags, bottles, straws, tableware, polystyrene (foam), cigarette filters, and beverage containers; and

(b) permanent, dedicated, and annual funding for the
(i) cleanup of derelict fishing gear,
(ii) community-led projects to clean up plastics and debris on shores, banks, beaches and other aquatic peripheries,
(iii) education and outreach campaigns on the root causes and negative environmental effects of plastic pollution in and around all bodies of water.