The annual 66m tonnes of plastic waste which plagues the world could be cut by 97 per cent thanks to reuse and return schemes.
In an analysis of the global plastic system, the Pew Charitable Trust, in collaboration with academics at Imperial College London and the University of Oxford, said plastic was now putting public health, world economies and the future of the planet at risk.
The study emphasised the single largest source of plastic waste across the world comes from packaging, which is used once then thrown away. In 2025 it made up 33 per cent of global plastic waste, causing 66m tonnes of pollution to enter the environment.
But the report pointed out that packaging pollution could be almost eliminated with concerted action such as deposit return schemes and reuse, where consumers take empty boxes or refillable cups to supermarkets and cafes.
Combined with bans on certain polymers and substituting plastic for other materials, plastic pollution could be cut by 97 per cent in the next 15 years.
However, if nothing is done, plastic pollution will more than double in the next 15 years to 280m metric tonnes a year, the equivalent to a rubbish truck full of plastic waste being dumped every second.
However, if nothing is done, plastic pollution will more than double in the next 15 years to 280m metric tonnes a year, the equivalent to a rubbish truck full of plastic waste being dumped every second.
This will damage every aspect of life; from the economy, to public health, to climate breakdown, the report, Breaking the Plastic Wave 2025, said.
‘This rapid growth will harm human health and livelihoods through increased levels of land, water and air pollution, exposure to toxic chemicals, and risk of disease, and lead to higher rates of ingestion and entanglement among other species, resulting in more animals suffering illness, injury and death,’ the authors said.
Plastic Waste Set To Rise
The production of plastic, which is made from fossil fuels, is expected to go up by 52 per cent from 450m tonnes this year to 680m tonnes in 2040, twice as fast as the over-burdened waste management systems across the world.
‘We have the ability to transform this, and nearly eliminate plastic pollution from packaging,’ said Winnie Lau, project director, preventing plastic pollution, at the Pew Foundation.
‘There are two key tools to decrease pollution from plastic packaging by 97 per cent by 2040. The biggest of these are reuse and return systems, which will remove two-thirds of the pollution. The second is the reduction of plastic production for packaging and the use of other materials like cardboard, glass, metal and banning certain polymers.’
As well as polluting the environment, human contact with plastic – from children playing with toys, to people living next to petrochemical plants – is causing serious health problems.
‘Plastic products contain more than 16,000 intentionally added chemicals as well as myriad unintentionally added contaminants,’ the report said.
‘Studies have already linked many of these chemicals to a range of health effects, such as hormone disruption, decreased fertility, low birth weights, cognitive and other developmental changes in children, diabetes and increases in cardiovascular and cancer risk factors.’
