The Plastic Garbage Crisis: Understanding The Devastating Impact

Plastic is a huge contributor to global waste. Of the 8.3 billion metric tons of plastic that has been produced, 6.3 billion metric tons has become plastic waste. Only 9% of plastic waste is recycled, with the vast majority accumulating in landfills or sloughing off in the natural environment as litter. In 2019, 6.1 million tonnes of plastic waste leaked into aquatic environments and 1.7 million tonnes flowed into oceans.

How much plastic is recycled?

While it is difficult to find accurate information on how much plastic is recycled, it is estimated that only a small percentage of the world's plastic is recycled. According to the OECD, just 9% of the world's plastic is recycled, with the remaining 91% of plastic waste being discarded, incinerated, or polluting the environment. The recycling of some specific types of plastic containers is more significant, with an 8.7% recycling rate in 2018. However, the cost of recycling is often higher than the cost of disposing of plastic waste, making it cheaper for brands to throw plastic packaging away rather than recycle it. The low cost of raw materials and plastic also contributes to this issue.

The complex nature of the recycling process and the varying recycling rates of different plastics make it challenging to determine the exact amount of recycled plastic. Additionally, efforts from oil companies and plastic manufacturers to greenwash their products by overstating their recyclable properties further complicate the matter. While most plastics are theoretically recyclable, our current recycling capacity is unable to handle the amount and types of plastic we are discarding. As a result, we need to explore more immediate solutions to the global plastic pollution crisis.

How much plastic ends up in landfill?

It is estimated that 44 million metric tons of plastic waste is deposited in landfills in the United States alone.

Of the 8.3 billion metric tons of plastic that has been produced, 6.3 billion metric tons has become plastic waste. Of that waste, only nine per cent has been recycled. The vast majority of plastic waste 79 per cent is accumulating in landfills or sloughing off in the natural environment as litter.

Mass production of plastics, which began just six decades ago, has accelerated so rapidly that it has created 8.3 billion metric tons—most of it in disposable products that end up as trash. Scientists who set out to conduct the world’s first tally of how much plastic has been produced, discarded, burned or put in landfills, were horrified by the sheer size of the numbers.

Jenna Jambeck, a University of Georgia environmental engineer who specializes in studying plastic waste in the oceans, said: "We all knew there was a rapid and extreme increase in plastic production from 1950 until now, but actually quantifying the cumulative number for all plastic ever made was quite shocking."

How much plastic waste is there per person?

Plastic waste generated annually per person varies from 221 kg in the United States and 114 kg in European OECD countries to 69 kg, on average, for Japan and Korea. In 2019, U.S. plastic waste generation was estimated at 73 million metric tons, corresponding to more than 220 kilograms per inhabitant. This was roughly five times more than the global average per capita plastic waste generation.

The world is producing twice as much plastic waste as two decades ago, with the bulk of it ending up in landfill, incinerated or leaking into the environment, and only 9% successfully recycled. Almost half of all plastic waste is generated in OECD countries. Packaging is the largest end-use market segment accounting for just over 40% of total plastic usage. Annually, approximately 500 billion plastic bags are used worldwide. More than one million bags are used every minute. A plastic bag has an average “working life” of 15 minutes.

In 2019, 6.1 million tonnes of plastic waste leaked into aquatic environments and 1.7 million tonnes flowed into oceans. There is now an estimated 30 million tonnes of plastic waste in seas and oceans, and a further 109 million tonnes has accumulated in rivers.

How much plastic ends up in the ocean?

It is estimated that between 1 and 2 million tonnes of plastic enter the oceans annually, which equates to around 0.5% of the world's plastic waste. This figure is based on the amount of plastic waste that is mismanaged, meaning it is not recycled, incinerated, or stored in sealed landfills. Rich countries produce the most plastic waste per person, but it is the mismanagement of this waste that is most important for plastic pollution. Mismanaged waste tends to be much higher in low-to-middle-income countries due to poorer waste management infrastructure.

The fate of plastics once they enter the ocean has puzzled researchers. At least one million tonnes of plastic enters the ocean each year, but the amount of plastic floating on the surface offshore is significantly less. This suggests that much of the plastic is sinking or being ingested by marine life.

The OECD Global Plastics Outlook estimates that 1.7 million tonnes of plastic end up in the oceans each year. This figure is based on the amount of plastic waste that is mismanaged or littered, which is estimated to be nearly one-quarter of the world's plastic waste, or around 82 million tonnes.

While the exact amount of plastic entering the oceans each year is uncertain, it is clear that plastic pollution is a significant problem. The impact of this pollution on marine life and the environment is still being studied, but it is clear that action is needed to reduce plastic waste and improve waste management practices.

How much plastic is burned?

The world is burning an alarming amount of plastic. Twenty-one per cent of all plastic waste is unmanaged, meaning it never makes it to a landfill or recycling plant. A majority of that unmanaged waste, around 57 per cent, is burned outside, creating deadly air pollution. Several countries in the Global South rank among the largest contributors. India’s municipalities burned approximately 5.8 million metric tons of plastic in 2020, while Indonesia burned around 1.9 million tons. Russia also makes it into the top five, openly burning more than 1.4 million metric tons of plastic in the same year.

Around 12 per cent of all plastic waste produced in cities is burned in the open air, creating air pollution and health risks. The US burns 12.5 per cent of its plastic waste, but it is estimated that it recycled only about 2 per cent of its municipal plastic waste in domestic facilities in 2018, burning more than six times that amount.

The European Union, which restricts the landfilling of organic waste, already burns almost 42 per cent of its waste. China already has some 300 waste-to-energy plants operating, with another several hundred in the pipeline. Burning plastic trash to create energy sounds sensible: plastic is, after all, made from hydrocarbons, just like oil, and is more energy-dense than coal.

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