Plastic Pollution

Plastic pollution is a global crisis causing extensive public health and ecological adversities. Single-use plastics are the most pervasive plastic pollutants that contain hazardous substances and that slowly break down into smaller particles that stay in the environment. Plastic is largely made from fossil fuels, and production is expected to increase by more than 30% over the next decade. At a current national recycling rate of 5%, recycling won’t ever be able to keep pace with the production or generation of single-use plastics. Many policies currently focus on how to manage waste once generated. But to address the full extent of the plastic pollution crisis, comprehensive policy strategies are needed that account for the full life cycle of plastics and remediate the problem upstream where it’s created.

Plastic pollution is infiltrating waterways worldwide, accumulating as toxic debris in marine life, and ultimately harming human health. Single-use plastics are the most pervasive plastic pollutants and, like all plastics, slowly break down into smaller particles that stay in the environment. Plastic is largely made from fossil fuels, and its production is expected to increase by more than 30% over the next decade. At a current national recycling rate of 5%, recycling will not be able to keep pace with the production or generation of single-use plastics. This resource provides an overview of the topic as well key components from NEC's Zero Waste Policy Roadmap.

Plastic pollution is infiltrating waterways worldwide, accumulating as toxic debris in marine life, and ultimately harming the humans who consume seafood. Single-use plastics, such as bottles, straws, and utensils, are the most pervasive plastic pollutants and slowly break down into smaller particles that stay in the environment. Recycling alone is not enough to meet these threats as plastic is predominantly made from fossil fuels and production is expected to increase by more than 30% over the next decade.

Plastic pollution is infiltrating waterways worldwide, accumulating as toxic debris in marine life, and ultimately harming the humans who consume seafood. Single-use plastics, such as bottles, straws, and utensils, are the most pervasive plastic pollutants and slowly break down into smaller particles that stay in the environment. Recycling alone is not enough to meet these threats as plastic is predominantly made from fossil fuels and production is expected to increase by more than 30% over the next decade. This briefing book contains a fact sheet, policy options, and messaging.

Millions of tons of post-consumer packaging enter our municipal solid waste management systems each year. While some is recycled, most is incinerated or buried in landfills. This volume of waste results in environmental harm and injustice, excess costs to taxpayers and potentially valuable recycling materials wasted. Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) (also referred to as product stewardship) ensures packaging producers assume responsibility for the cost of collecting and sorting recyclables at end of life. Producers internalize these costs by incorporating them into the price of new products. This creates an incentive to design better and identify opportunities for efficiency in the recycling system to reduce costs, leading to an increase in recycling. EPR is a strategy to add all of the environmental costs associated with a product throughout the product life cycle to the market price of that product.

This sheet debunks some of the common myths surrounding plastic pollution.

Only 9% of all plastic waste ever made has been recycled. So where does the rest of the plastic go? A vast majority of plastic pollution accumulates in landfills, where it then makes its way into the environment and, eventually, into the oceans. Plastics can withstand extreme and harsh conditions and can take hundreds of years to decompose in landfills and the environment. It is in the water we drink – even the air we breathe – and has major implications for human health. However, plastic pollution doesn’t just affect the environment and human health, it is also a huge economic burden. This one-pager outlines the economic costs of plastics and the benefits of reusables.