While there are many communities that separate waste properly, a recent study determined that less than 10% of plastics are made with recycled material.
Precisely 9.5% of the plastics produced worldwide in 2022 were made from discarded materials.
The results come from the exhaustive analysis carried out by Chinese scientists in this sector. They also warn that plastic is a serious global pollution problem, “pressing and growing.”
Where does recycled material go and what happens with plastics
The study, conducted by scientists from Tsinghua University in Beijing, China, also warns of the significant increase in the amount of plastic being disposed of by incineration.
This is in addition to substantial regional differences in material consumption.
Most ends up in landfills or incinerated.
The study details were published on Thursday in the journal Communications Earth & Environment, from the Nature group.
Quanyin Tan and colleagues conducted an analysis of the global plastics sector in 2022, using data from national statistics, industry reports, and international databases to develop a detailed global and regional overview of plastic production, use, and disposal.
The figures they arrived at are alarming. Of the 400 million tons of plastic produced that year, just under 38 million tons (9.5%) were made from recycled materials.
98% of the remaining 362 million tons were generated from fossil fuels, mainly coal and oil.
Furthermore, approximately 268 million tons were discarded during the year, of which only 27.9% were sent for sorting and possible recycling.
In contrast, 36.2% was sent directly to landfills and 22.2% to incineration. However, as a positive point, the total percentage sent to landfills in 2022 decreased significantly compared to the 79% disposed of in that manner between 1950 and 2015.
Ultimately, only half of the sorted plastic was truly recycled, another 41% was incinerated, and 8.4% was sent to landfills.
Increasing plastic production
Global plastic production, which rose from two million tons annually in 1950 to 400 million in 2022, is projected to reach 800 million by 2050.
Environmental pollution due to plastic waste. Photo: Unsplash
The country that consumes the most plastic
The study also analyzed data by regions, revealing that China was the largest consumer of plastic overall, with 80 million tons per year.
On the other hand, the United States recorded the highest per capita plastic consumption, with an average of 216 kg per person per year.
The authors believe that this data can be used to design future policies and regulations to curb this serious global pollution problem.
According to Ethel Eljarrat, director of the Institute of Environmental Diagnosis and Water Studies (IDAEA-CSIC) in Spain, this report highlights that “we continue with the same trends as in previous years.”
Therefore, measures to address this issue are not having “the desired effect.”
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