Global Plastic Waste Hits 52 Million Metric Tons Annually
The world creates 52 million metric tons of plastic pollution every year and spreads it from the deepest oceans to the highest mountaintops and the inside of people's bodies, according to a new study.
Researchers at the UK's University of Leeds examined waste produced on the local level in more than 50,000 cities and towns worldwide.
The study looked at plastic that goes into the open environment, not plastic that goes into landfills or is properly burned.
India leads the world in generating plastic pollution, producing 9.3 million metric tons, far more than double the next major-polluting nations, Nigeria and Indonesia.
China, often vilified for pollution, is fourth but is making huge strides in reducing waste, study author Costas Velis said. Other top plastic polluters are Pakistan, Bangladesh, Russia and Brazil.
Those eight nations are responsible for more than half of the world's plastic pollution, according to the study's data.
For 15% of the world's population, governments fail to collect and dispose of waste, the study's authors said — a big reason Southeast Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa produce the most plastic waste.
The study used artificial intelligence to concentrate on plastics that were improperly burned or just dumped. In these cases, nanoplastics are what turn the problem from a visual annoyance and a marine life problem to a human health threat, Velis said.
We shouldn't put any blame on the Global South, he added, calling it "everybody's problem" and one that will haunt future generations.
Outside experts worried the study's focus on pollution, rather than overall production, lets the plastics industry off the hook. Making plastics releases large amounts of greenhouse gas that contribute to climate change.
The United Nations projects that plastics production is likely to rise from about 400 million metric tons a year to more than 1,100 million metric tons, saying "our planet is choking in plastic."
In 2022, most of the world's nations agreed to make the first legally binding treaty on plastic pollution, including in the oceans. Final treaty negotiations will take place in South Korea in November.
