Plastic pollution poses a grave danger to wildlife, with plastic that entraps, traps, engulfs or poisons animals posing a severe threat to them and contributing to climate change.
Global solutions must be sought for this issue of plastic pollution. Solutions should include production, consumption and disposal measures – as well as international policies designed to lower plastic emission levels.
What is Plastic?
Plastic is an artificial material commonly found in the latter half of the 20th century. The term “plastic” derives from Greek word plastikos meaning to mould; plastic production occurs by using fossil fuels to form hydrocarbon compounds with hydrogen and carbon atoms as building blocks to produce long polymer molecules with addition or removal of chemical groups to form different kinds of materials arranged into long chains called filaments, known as thermoplastic or thermosetting plastics; thermoplastic plastics can be heated easily before being bent while thermosetting plastics cannot be bent easily like thermoplastic polymers can. Linear or cross-linked polymers make up this industry segment
Plastic materials offer many advantages, such as their low costs, versatility and durability; however, their benefits come at the cost of the environment. Plastics that remain in the environment for too long pose threats to wildlife populations and human health alike – not to mention some types of plastic releasing harmful chemicals into food and water sources.
Everyday, approximately 2,000 garbage trucks full of plastic waste are dumped into oceans, rivers and lakes worldwide, most of it ending up in landfills or leaching back into the environment. This pollution disrupts natural processes while impairing climate change adaptation capacities as well as human and animal health; for this reason alone it is crucial to address plastic pollution through a holistic One Health approach.
Plastics can also act as an effective vector to spread infectious diseases. For instance, they can encourage mosquito larvae growth and provide shelter to these vectors’ immature stages, thus increasing disease transmission rates including arthropod-borne illnesses like malaria, dengue and chikungunya.
Plastics can also contribute to waterborne diseases, including diarrheal illnesses. A recent study discovered that drinking water bottles made from plastic resins increased risk for children in low-income countries of diarrheal illness; thus it concluded that decreasing usage and encouraging responsible disposal would help mitigate such health issues.
How is Plastic Produced?
Plastic is produced by mixing raw materials with heat and various additives to form long chains of molecules that can be molded, cast, spun or applied as coatings. While there are natural polymers like rubber and silk available, their presence does not persist in the environment for an extended period. In contrast, synthetic plastics tend to remain for years after production compared with these natural polymers – most global plastic production comes from crude oil-derived petrochemicals; consequently 5% of global greenhouse gas emissions come from plastic production alone!
Fracking gas in the United States fuels the explosive expansion of plastic manufacturing industries, which reduces costs associated with petrochemicals, enabling factories to expand rapidly. Unfortunately, rapid expansion also contributes to climate crisis: to mitigate carbon pollution and avoid catastrophic climate catastrophe, rapid transition away from fossil fuels toward investing in renewable energy solutions must occur immediately – otherwise Earth will continue experiencing extreme weather and environmental stressors like ocean plastic pollution.
Since plastics’ introduction into mass production in the 1950s, 8.3 billion tons have been manufactured and 79% ended up either in landfills or leaked into the environment – an alarming statistic which only continues to compound itself with time. Its ecological, social, and economic costs are immense – yet such widespread waste exists regardless of any regulations regarding disposal.
Plastic pollution threatens marine life as well as human health and livelihoods, prompting the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals to include targets to decrease plastic pollution through sustainable consumption and production patterns.
Unfortunately, despite this recognition of the plastics crisis, not much has been done to address it. Single-use plastic items ranging from bottles and shopping bags are improperly disposed of; whether this means being dropped on the ground, thrown from car windows, or piling up onto overflowing trash bins without proper transport to landfills, recycling centers, or incinerators; as a result they remain as litter for hundreds of years before eventually breaking down and disappearing into our environment.
How is Plastic Waste Disposed?
Plastic production involves burning fossil fuels in an energy-intensive process that releases greenhouse gases and toxic chemicals, while once plastic has left its factory it remains on earth for hundreds of years after being thrown away or recycled.
Though many believe they’re making an effort by depositing plastic waste in their local recycling bin, the reality is that most plastic waste never actually gets recycled due to it not being designed for this process and being too costly or energy-intensive for recycling purposes. Furthermore, plastic pollutes our environment while using valuable water and energy resources which are often limited.
Municipal policies that encourage the inclusion of all forms of plastic into one bin — known as single-stream recycling — compound this problem further, making it harder for recyclers to distinguish among similar plastic types, ultimately leading to lower quality recycled products.
Many pieces of recycled plastic end up in landfills or open dumps where it clings to soil and leaches into surrounding water and land, attracting disease-carrying rats, gulls and other unwanted pests that spread disease while emitting climate-warming methane gas and toxic fumes into the atmosphere. Furthermore, such plastic poses a fire hazard as well as being an unpredictable source of harmful toxins that may cause respiratory illness in people working nearby these facilities.
Middle and low-income countries with limited waste management systems in place face a challenge when it comes to imported scrap plastic: an estimated 5-20% has no market value and ends up either landfilled or open dumped, leading to degraded environments, poor health conditions and environmental justice issues for nearby residents. It may even be mixed in with trash for burning purposes causing smoke inhalation, lung damage and cancer cases.
Repurposing plastics into new products would be the more sustainable solution, yet this process can be complex and requires a standardized resin identification code system that allows manufacturers to easily identify specific polymers at waste sorting facilities, known as materials recovery facilities (MRF). With such information in place, more efficient processing would occur and better results achieved in recycled plastics.
What is the Solution?
Though many solutions are being proposed, the most effective one may require systemic reform in all sectors involved with plastic production and consumption – from agriculture to energy, technology, transportation, waste management, consumer goods and beyond. Such an initiative should include restrictions on production; investments in alternatives to single-use plastics; incentives for businesses adopting plastic-free strategies and policies encouraging circular economic models for plastic recycling.
Countries and cities must focus on developing an in-depth knowledge base about the issue before taking steps to combat it, including developing standardised methodologies to measure, monitor, and generate data to inform policy decisions. Furthermore, governments must invest in increasing collection infrastructure while ending exports of waste exports and using taxes or fiscal incentives to discourage single-use plastic use by encouraging reusable goods while encouraging sustainable production processes.
An important solution is the implementation of Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) laws, which would mandate companies take full responsibility for their products throughout their entire life cycle, from recycling and disposal. EPR laws have already become common practice in Europe and US states and have proven to reduce plastic pollution significantly.
Individuals can help by reducing plastic usage wherever possible and opting for products made with recycled materials as well as supporting local food options that do not rely on plastic packaging and transport for sustenance.
Scientists have developed innovative tools to tackle plastic pollution. In 2016, Japanese scientists discovered a bacteria capable of “eating” Polyethylene Terephthalate (PET), one of the most popular forms of plastic. This bacteria releases an enzyme which breaks down PET before eating it up for energy use.
Solving the plastic pollution epidemic will be challenging, yet possible. Now is the time to act so we can ensure the future of all its inhabitants – this planet includes us!
