Plastic waste

Plastic waste describes plastic objects which have not been recycled or disposed properly, or have been illegally dumped. Between one and eight million tons of plastic waste enters the Earth's oceans every year,^[1] and the World Economic Forum predicts this will double by 2030 if no action is taken.^[2] Thin plastic objects such as plastic bags and litter can be blown away by rainwater and wind into rivers and drains.^[3] This can cause drainage problems on land and pollution at sea.^[4] Birds and sea turtles can often mistake these plastic bags for jellyfish or other forms of food. Fish and marine mammals also eat thousands of tons of plastic waste each year.^[5] Some countries banned plastic drinking straws in response to a video showing a turtle with a straw stuck up its nose.^[6]^[7] Sea turtles are not the only animals effected. Plastic waste also poses a threat to other forms of marine life, such as seabirds, fish, and marine mammals, as they can become entangled in them, or ingest these pieces of plastic, resulting in suffocation or starvation.^[8] Paper straws are a proposed alternative as they break down after a long time in seawater.^[9]

Plastic Waste Media

The pathway by which plastics enters the world's oceans
Beach cleanup
Plastic bottle stuck on edge of river
Microplastics in the surface ocean 1950–2000 and projections beyond, in million metric tonnes
Average estimated decomposition times of typical marine debris items. Plastic items are shown in blue.
Single-serve sachets are a major contributor to plastic pollution, especially in developing countries
Share of plastic waste that is inadequately managed
Per capita mismanaged plastic waste (in kilograms per person per day)
Atlantic Ocean marine plastic on a beach in Tenerife