The Problems with Plastics

Plastics, and the impact on our world is an ever-growing problem for an ever-growing number of people. However, similar to the fossil fuel issue, we cannot simply ban their use overnight, and even if we could, the impact on our lives would be astronomical (materially higher costs for just about everything, safety and medical risks). Despite this, there are plenty of things we can be doing to make the situation markedly better.

In 1950, global plastic production was just about 1.5–2 million metric tons per year, but by 2022, production reached 400 million metric tons, marking a sustained exponential upward trajectory. And notably half of all plastics ever manufactured have been made in the last 15 years.

We outline the issues and improvement below:

Environmental Persistence

Most plastics are not biodegradable. They can take hundreds of years to break down, fragmenting into microplastics rather than disappearing. These microplastics are now found everywhere — oceans, soil, air, and even inside living organisms (including humans).

Wildlife Harm

Animals can mistake plastic for food or become entangled in it, leading to injury, starvation, or death. Floating plastics can also carry invasive species across oceans, disrupting ecosystems.

Pollution During Production & Disposal

Plastics are made from fossil fuels, so their production releases greenhouse gases.

Burning or improperly disposing of plastics can release toxic chemicals such as dioxins and phthalates.

Human Health Risks

Microplastics have been found in food, water, and even blood samples.

Additives in plastics (e.g., BPA, PFAS) may disrupt hormones or cause other health issues.

Economic and Waste Management Pressure

Many plastic products are single-use, generating enormous waste volumes that recycling systems cannot keep up with.Recycling rates are often low because mixed plastics are hard to process and not always economically viable to recycle.

Solutions to the Plastic Problem:

Reduce Plastic Use (Upstream Solutions)

Shift to reusable products (bags, bottles, food containers). Eliminate unnecessary packaging through redesign and bulk sales. Encourage bans or restrictions on single-use plastics (straws, cutlery, bags).

Substitute Materials

Replace conventional plastics with biodegradable or compostable alternatives (plant-based plastics, paper, edible packaging) where recycling is not possible.

Use durable, repairable, and recyclable materials like glass, metal, and natural fibers.

Improve Recycling and Waste Management

We must massively step up Recycling. No one would dream of throwing a metal away – too much energy has gone into its production and it’s too valuable to waste it – the same applies to plastics (which is one of the reasons biodegradable plastics is not a “silver bullet”).

To do this we have to invest in better sorting and processing technologies, develop chemical recycling to break plastics down into their original monomers, and create incentives for manufacturers to use recycled content (and penalise them if they don’t). The same applies to us, the consumer.

There are too many different types of plastic, which makes re-cycle more challenging, the intellectual property of a host of big companies with vested interest in maintaining the status quo. It is however estimated, the worlds plastic needs could be met with less than 10 polymers. Governments need to legislate to mandate the reduction of the number of polymers that can be used and sold, thus making it far easier to sort and recycle.

Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR)

Make companies responsible for the entire lifecycle of their products, including take-back and recycling, and enforce with hefty fines.

Cleanup Efforts

Ocean and river cleanup initiatives (like The Ocean Cleanup Project).

Local litter-collection drives and fishing-for-plastics programs.

Consumer Awareness and Education

Inform people about the hidden plastic in products (e.g., microbeads in cosmetics, synthetic clothing fibres). Promote behavioural change toward less waste.

Policy and International Agreements

Global treaties on plastic pollution (a UN Global Plastics Treaty is currently being negotiated). National policies to phase out harmful plastics and support circular economy models.

In summary, plastics need not be the enemy, and modern society is highly dependent on them, however they must be manufactured, designed and used responsibly and sustainably, and most importantly, they must be recycled. We must eliminate single use plastic. To enable this, the number of polymers must be restricted, and incentives and penalties ramped up to shift the economic balance away from dumping cheap commodity plastic in landfill and oceans, to recycling them.