Plastic Pollution: Understanding The Litter Crisis

Plastic is a huge contributor to litter. In fact, it makes up nearly 70% of all ocean litter. Billions of tons of plastic have been produced over the past decades, and much of it is becoming trash and litter. Only 9% of plastic has ever been recycled, with the vast majority accumulating in landfills or sloughing off in the natural environment as litter.

Plastic makes up nearly 70% of all ocean litter

Billions of tons of plastic have been produced over the past decades, and much of it is becoming trash and litter. In fact, of the 8.3 billion metric tons of plastic that has been produced, 6.3 billion metric tons has become plastic waste. Of that, only nine percent has been recycled. The vast majority—79 percent—is accumulating in landfills or sloughing off in the natural environment as litter.

If present trends continue, by 2050, there will be 12 billion metric tons of plastic in landfills. That amount is 35,000 times as heavy as the Empire State Building. This is a huge problem, as plastic takes a very long time to break down, and can have harmful effects on marine life.

One way to reduce the amount of plastic litter is to use alternative materials for packaging. Scientists have recently developed a new alternative to PET, one of the most common plastics used for packaging, made completely from natural, renewable, low-impact ingredients including chitin (crab shells) and tree material (cellulose). Initial tests are showing that this new substance is actually more effective than PET at sealing goods and preventing oxygen exposure.

Only 9% of plastic has been recycled

Plastic makes up nearly 70% of all ocean litter. Billions of tons of plastic have been made over the past decades, and much of it is becoming trash and litter. Of the 8.3 billion metric tons that has been produced, 6.3 billion metric tons has become plastic waste. Only nine percent has been recycled. The vast majority—79 percent—is accumulating in landfills or sloughing off in the natural environment as litter.

The "natural capital cost", based on environmental impact, of consumer plastics is estimated at $75 billion each year. The "natural capital cost" of plastic litter that becomes marine debris is estimated at $13 billion each year. Plastic utensils are virtually impossible to recycle through curbside recycling programs, and 98% of all U.S. takeout cups and all the items that go with them (lid, sleeve, stir stick, etc.) comprise 13% of the litter on Bay Area streets.

Clean Water Fund’s 2011 Bay Area litter survey demonstrated that 67% of the litter on Bay Area streets consisted of food and beverage packaging. Scientists have recently developed a new alternative to PET made completely from natural, renewable, low impact ingredients including chitin (crab shells) and tree material (cellulose). Initial tests are showing that this new substance is actually more effective than PET at sealing goods and preventing oxygen exposure.

If present trends continue, by 2050, there will be 12 billion metric tons of plastic in landfills. That amount is 35,000 times as heavy as the Empire State Building.

Plastic utensils are virtually impossible to recycle

Plastic makes up nearly 70% of all ocean litter. This is due to the fact that plastic is incredibly difficult to recycle. Of the 8.3 billion metric tons of plastic that has been produced, only 9% has been recycled. The vast majority of plastic (79%) ends up in landfills or as litter in the natural environment.

Plastic utensils are a prime example of plastic products that are virtually impossible to recycle. Most plastic utensils are made from a type of plastic known as polystyrene, which is difficult to recycle due to its low melting point. Polystyrene is also often contaminated with food residue, which makes it even more challenging to recycle.

Even when plastic utensils are collected for recycling, they often end up being rejected by recycling facilities. This is because most facilities are not equipped to handle polystyrene, and the low melting point can cause issues during the recycling process. In addition, the small size and light weight of plastic utensils can cause them to fall through the cracks of sorting machines, leading to further contamination and rejection.

Another issue with recycling plastic utensils is that they are often made from a mix of different plastics. This is done to improve durability and heat resistance, but it makes the recycling process much more complex. Separating the different types of plastic is challenging and often not cost-effective, so many recycling facilities simply reject these items.

Finally, the majority of plastic utensils are used for takeout or single-use purposes, which means they are often not even placed in recycling bins to begin with. They end up in landfills or as litter, contributing to the vast amount of plastic waste that is polluting our planet. It is clear that plastic utensils are a significant contributor to the global plastic waste problem, and their virtual impossibility to recycle makes them a major environmental concern.

Plastic litter that becomes marine debris costs $13 billion each year

Plastic makes up nearly 70% of all ocean litter. 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 this has been recycled, with the vast majority (79%) accumulating in landfills or sloughing off in the natural environment as litter.

The "natural capital cost" of plastic litter that becomes marine debris is estimated at $13 billion each year. This figure is based on the environmental impact of consumer plastics, including losses incurred by fisheries and tourism due to plastic littering, as well as beach clean-up costs.

The negative financial impacts of marine litter are significant, and it is hoped that highlighting these impacts will encourage the consumer goods sector to reduce plastic waste. Valuing Plastic, which looks at the end-of-life management for all plastics, suggests that consumer goods companies could save $4 billion per year with good plastic waste management.

The UNEP Executive Director, Achim Steiner, has emphasised the importance of reducing, recycling and redesigning products that use plastics to bring multiple green economy benefits. This includes reducing economic damage to marine ecosystems, the tourism industry, and fisheries, which are vital for many developing countries.

Food and beverage packaging makes up 67% of litter on Bay Area streets

Plastic makes up a large proportion of litter. A 2011 Bay Area litter survey found that 67% of litter on Bay Area streets consisted of food and beverage packaging. This includes takeout cups and their accompanying items, such as lids, sleeves and stir sticks, which make up 13% of litter on their own.

The mass production of plastics has created 8.3 billion metric tons of plastic, most of which is in disposable products that end up as trash. Of this, only 9% has been recycled, with the vast majority (79%) accumulating in landfills or sloughing off in the natural environment as litter. If present trends continue, there will be 12 billion metric tons of plastic in landfills by 2050.

The environmental impact of consumer plastics is estimated at $75 billion each year, with the natural capital cost of plastic litter that becomes marine debris estimated at $13 billion. Plastic makes up nearly 70% of all ocean litter.

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