Madam Speaker, I want to thank my good friend, the hon. member for Courtenay—Alberni, for his tireless dedication to combatting plastic waste and protecting our oceans from plastic pollution. I could not agree more on the importance of this issue. This is why this government is taking prompt action.
We made oceans plastics a priority for the G7 presidency and put forward the Charlevoix blueprint for healthy oceans and the ocean plastic charter at the G7 leaders summit this past June. The charter commits to pursuing actions along the entire life cycle of plastics to address plastic pollution and marine litter.
To date, the charter has been endorsed by 10 governments, including Canada, Italy, France, the U.K. and the European Union. Support for the charter's commitments is not limited to government, however. I am also pleased to note that more than 18 major businesses and non-governmental organizations have endorsed the ocean plastic charter to date, including Unilever, the Dow Chemical Company, Loblaws, Coca-Cola, Walmart and A&W Canada, just to name a few. These international commitments provide a springboard for action in Canada.
Federal, provincial and territorial governments are currently working together, through the Canadian Council of Ministers of the Environment, the CCME, to develop a national strategy and action that responds to the charter and moves toward zero plastic waste. Our shared goal is to keep all types of plastics in the economy out of landfills and the environment.
This work is advancing rapidly and involves consultations with the public, local governments, indigenous communities, industry and other stakeholders. For example, the CCME conducted a national stakeholder consultation on a draft framework for zero plastic waste this past August, and received over 200 stakeholder responses.
Environment and Climate Change Canada also engaged all Canadians through a public online consultation, which ran from April to September 2018. The “Moving Canada Toward Zero Plastic Waste” consultation received 13,000 comments and letters from Canadians, which will inform our approach to this issue.
We are following through on our commitments with real actions and investments. These include $100 million to support international plastic waste management and innovation and more than $12 million to support a domestic plastic innovation challenge right here at home. We have also committed to lead by example by diverting 75% of all plastic waste from federal government operations by 2030. We will achieve this target by increasing recycling activities, reducing the unnecessary use of single-use plastics in government meetings and events and promoting the purchase of sustainable plastic products.
Finally, it is clear that Canadians are passionate about this issue, as is the hon. member, and they want action from all levels of government as well as industry. This is a complex issue that requires a comprehensive response. That is why we are working with all provinces and territories to develop a coordinated national approach.