Turning off the plastic tap

A historic agreement has been reached on plastic pollution (see p13). 175 nations that met in Nairobi, Kenya, in March have agreed to come up with a binding treaty to tackle a problem that no one nation can address on its own. But how big is the problem of plastic pollution?

The figures for plastic waste are shocking. Seventy years ago production was relatively low, with 2 million tonnes of plastic produced in 1950. Today production is pushing towards 350 million tonnes per year and much of it is going into packaging, textiles and consumer goods that we all use. Yet despite recycling rates increasing to a little over 20%, the majority of that plastic (55%) is discarded with the remainder incinerated. The world isn’t coping well with that 55% it discards either. Models suggest that about 11 million tonnes of it is entering the world’s oceans every year and three-quarters of the plastic ever made is now waste.