The European Parliament has overwhelmingly approved a ban on single-use plastics such as straws, plates, cutlery and cotton-swab sticks in Europe over the next few years.

The banned items are "the top 10 plastic products that most often end up in the ocean" where they could exist for centuries poisoning the wildlife and fouling the undersea environment.  Items such as plastic straws, cotton swabs, as well as disposable plastic plates and cutlery would be banned by 2021; 90 percent of plastic bottle are to be recycled by 2025.

"We have adopted the most ambitious legislation against single-use plastics," said Belgian MEP Frederique Ries, who drafted the bill. 

"Today's vote paves the way to a forthcoming and ambitious directive," she added.  "It is essential in order to protect the marine environment and reduce the costs of environmental damage attributed to plastic pollution in Europe, estimated at 22 billion euros by 2030."

As much as 90 percent of humanity's plastic waste ends up in the ocean.  The World Economic Forum estimates that there are already 50 million tons of plastic in the oceans that could take centuries to degrade.  At that rate, the forum warnsthat by 2050, there would be more plastic than fish in weight in oceans.