Plastic Waste: America's Landfills Crisis

Plastic waste is a huge problem in the US, with an estimated 44 million metric tons of plastic waste in the country. In 2019, plastic waste constituted nearly 14% of all municipal solid waste, with some states reaching 18%. In 2021, 85% of plastic waste went to landfill, with only 5-6% being recycled. This is a huge environmental issue, as well as a waste management and land use problem.

Plastic waste in landfills is worth billions of dollars

Plastic waste in US landfills is worth billions of dollars. In 2019, samples suggested that plastic waste constituted nearly 14% of all municipal solid waste in the US. In some states, such as Kansas, Nebraska and North Carolina, the percentages of plastic waste in landfills reached 18%. The US Environmental Protection Agency estimates that there are 32 million metric tons of plastic waste in the US, while the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) puts the figure at 44 million metric tons.

In 2021, 85% of US plastic waste went to landfills, with only 5-6% being recycled. This is a decrease from 2018, when the rate of plastic recycling was 8.7%. The problem of plastic waste in US landfills is particularly acute in populous states like California, Texas and Florida, which send the most plastic waste to landfill. New York City sends much of its plastic waste to surrounding states due to a lack of space.

The high value of plastic waste in landfills is not just an environmental issue, but also a waste management and land use issue. Leaving plastic waste in landfills wastes money and energy. For example, the energy value of landfilled plastic waste in 2019 was enough to supply 5% of the power used by the country's transportation sector, or 5.5% by the industrial sector.

Investing in new recycling technology could help divert some of the plastic waste from landfills. The authors of a report on plastic waste in US landfills hope that their findings will spur policy changes to promote a system of recycling throughout the nation.

The US Environmental Protection Agency estimates 32 million metric tons of plastic waste

The US Environmental Protection Agency estimates that there are 32 million metric tons of plastic waste in the United States. This figure is based on an analysis of the amount of plastic waste deposited in landfills on a regional, state, and county level. The problem of plastic waste in the US is bigger than previously believed, with only about 5% of plastic waste in the country being recycled in 2019, while 86% was left in landfills. The rest was burned to generate electricity.

The low recycling rates in the US are due to several factors, including population growth, consumer preference for single-use plastics, and low disposal fees in certain parts of the country. In addition, China's refusal to import non-industrial plastic waste from the US since 2017 has exacerbated the problem.

The energy value of landfilled plastic waste is significant, with scientists at the US Department of Energy's National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) calculating that it was enough to supply 5% of the power used by the country's transportation sector or 5.5% by the industrial sector in 2019. NREL estimates the total amount of plastic waste in the US to be 44 million metric tons, slightly higher than the EPA's estimate.

Communities across the US spent about $2.3 billion on plastic waste disposal in 2019, highlighting the economic burden of this issue. The rate of plastic recycling has decreased since 2018, with only 5-6% of plastic waste being recycled in 2021, according to a report by environmental groups Beyond Plastics and The Last Beach Cleanup. This low recycling rate underscores the need for alternative solutions to tackle plastic waste pollution.

Only 5% of plastic waste was recycled in 2019

In 2019, only 5% of plastic waste in the United States was recycled. The rest was either left in landfills (86%) or burned to generate electricity (9%). This amounts to 44 million metric tons of plastic waste, according to the U.S. Department of Energy's National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL). Using a different methodology, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency puts the figure at 32.2 million metric tons.

The low recycling rate of plastic waste in the U.S. is due to several factors, including population growth, consumer preference for single-use plastics, and low disposal fees in certain parts of the country. Additionally, China's refusal to import non-industrial plastic waste from the U.S. since 2017 has exacerbated the problem.

The issue of plastic waste in landfills is not just a physical problem but also one of energy loss. The energy value of landfilled plastic in 2019 was enough to supply 5% of the power used by the country's transportation sector or 5.5% by the industrial sector. This highlights the economic opportunities that could arise from recovering the value of plastic waste through different processes.

The rate of plastic recycling in the U.S. has decreased since 2018, when it was at 8.7%. In 2021, only 5-6% of plastic waste was recycled, with about 85% going to landfills and 10% being incinerated. This low recycling rate should be a wake-up call to the false promise that plastic recycling is a credible solution to plastic waste and pollution.

Populous states like California, Texas and Florida send the most plastic waste to landfill

In 2019, only about 5% of the waste plastic in the United States was recycled, while 86% was left in landfills. The rest was burned to generate electricity. The amount of plastic waste in the United States is estimated to be 44 million metric tons by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) and 32.2 million metric tons by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

Populous states like California, Texas and Florida are likely to send the most plastic waste to landfill due to their large populations. These states have a high consumption of single-use plastics and low recycling rates, which contributes to the high volume of plastic waste. Additionally, low disposal fees in certain parts of these states may discourage recycling and proper waste management practices.

The problem of plastic waste in landfills is not unique to these states, however. Across the country, communities spent about $2.3 billion on plastic waste disposal in 2019. The issue has been exacerbated by China's refusal to import non-industrial plastic waste from the United States since 2017.

To address the problem of plastic waste in landfills, it is important to increase recycling rates and reduce the consumption of single-use plastics. Additionally, there is a need to explore alternative methods of waste management, such as incineration or recovering the value of plastic waste through different processes. By reducing the amount of plastic waste sent to landfills, we can not only improve the environment but also harness the energy value of plastic waste, which could potentially supply a significant portion of the power used by the transportation or industrial sectors.

The rate of plastic recycling has decreased since 2018

The rate of plastic recycling in the US has decreased since 2018. In 2018, the US plastic recycling rate was 8.7%, but by 2021, this had dropped to 5-6%. The decline in recycling rates is due to several factors, including low recycling rates, population growth, consumer preference for single-use plastics, and low disposal fees in certain parts of the country. China's refusal to import non-industrial plastic waste from the US since 2017 has also contributed to the problem, as the US previously exported millions of tons of plastic waste to China and counted it as recycled.

The amount of plastic waste in the US is significant, with an estimated 44 million metric tons of plastic waste in the country. Of this, only a small percentage is recycled, with 86% of plastic waste in the US ending up in landfills in 2019. The problem of plastic waste in the US is bigger than previously believed, and the economic opportunities that could arise from recovering the value of this waste through different processes are being explored.

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