Nouvelle
Plastics and the Environment
The world is facing a plastic crisis, the status quo is not an option. Plastic pollution is a serious issue of global concern which requires an urgent and international response involving all relevant actors at different levels. This page aims at listing relevant information, research, data and/or press releases issued by our partners in Geneva and other institutions around the world.
International Cooperation on Plastics
As plastic is a global issue, international cooperation is needed to coordinate actions to have an efficient decision making in order to tackle this major environmental problem. A number of initiatives and activities exist aiming at addressing the plastic waste problem and eliminating plastic litter entering the oceans.
- UNEP / UNEA | Ad hoc open-ended expert group on marine litter and microplastics
- Basel Convention | Plastic Waste Amendments
- Basel Convention | Plastic Waste Partnership
- CIEL | Updates: Progress on plastics
- Global Partnership on Marine Litter
- IHEID Global Governance Center | Governing plastic: the global political economy and regulation of plastic production and pollution
Find out more information on advancing international cooperation on plastic pollution.
- Geneva Beat Plastic Pollution Dialogues
- UNEP #BeatPollution campaign
- New Year brings new controls on plastic waste and more local, national and global action | Rolph Payet | 2 January 2021
- Basel Convention’s Plastic Waste Amendments become mandatory for 186 States | Secretariat of the Basel, Rotterdam, and Stockholm Conventions | 1 January 2021
- We Need a Paris Agreement for Plastics | Dave Ford | Scientific American | 30 December 2020
- Plastic waste shipments: new EU rules on importing and exporting plastic waste | European Commission | 22 December 2020
- New initiatives launched to intensify WTO work on trade and the environment | WTO | 17 November 2020
- NGOs and Businesses Call for UN Treaty on Plastic Pollution | WWF | 14 October 2020
- The business case for a UN treaty on plastic pollution | WWF, Ellen MacArthur Foundation and Boston Consulting Group | 2020
- Convention on Plastic Pollution: Toward a New Global Agreement to Address Plastic Pollution | CIEL, Environmental Investigation Agency, GAIA, and #breakfreefromplastic | June 2020
- Governments agree landmark decisions to protect people and planet from hazardous chemicals and waste, including plastic waste | UNEP News | 12 May 2019
Plastic Pollution Crisis
This section aims to collect information on the plastic pollution crisis to have a broad picture of the challenges that plastics represent to the environment.
The plastics industry began in the early 1900s when the first synthetic plastic was created in the U.S. Since the industry began, annual global plastic production has exploded from some 1.5 million metric tons in 1950 to 359 billion metric tons in 2018 (Statista, 2020). The cumulative production of plastic surpassed eight billion metric tons worldwide, and it is expected to further increase in the coming decades. Plastics cause pollution at almost every stage of their lifecycle, starting with the use of fossil fuels for their production.
- Banks Called Out For Their Role In Financing Plastic Pollution | Forbes | 8 January 2021
- Confronting the Plastic Pollution Pandemic | Tallash Kantai | IISD | 22 December 2020
- BRANDED Vol III: Demanding Corporate Accountability for Plastic Pollution” | Break Free From Plastic | 2 December 2020
- The New Plastics Economy Global Commitment 2020 Progress Report | Ellen MacArthur Foundation and UNEP | 6 November 2020
- How fossil fuel-derived pesticides and plastics harm health, biodiversity, and the climate | Barbara A Demeneix | The Lancet Diabetes & Endocrinology | June 2020
- The world’s plastic pollution crisis explained | National Geographic | 7 June 2019
- Plastic Pollution and Potential Solutions | Christopher J. Rhodes | Science Progress | 1 September 2018
- Beat Plastic Pollution | World Environment Day 2018 | UNEP | 5 June 2018
- Fueling Plastics: Untested Assumptions and Unanswered Questions in the Plastics Boom raise | CIEL | 3 April 2018
- Plastics Industry Knew its Products were Polluting Oceans by 1970s, Then Spent Decades Denying Responsibility and Fighting Regulation | CIEL | 5 December 2017
- Fueling Plastics: New Research Details Fossil Fuel Role in Plastics Proliferation | CIEL | 21 September 2017
- Production, use, and fate of all plastics ever made | Roland Geyer, Jenna R. Jambeck, et al. | Science Advances | 19 July 2017
- The New Plastics Economy: Catalysing action | WEF & Ellen MacArthur Foundation | January 2017
- The New Plastics Economy – Rethinking the future of plastics | WEF | January 2016
- IPEN’s Toxic Plastics Campaign | IPEN
- Plastic Pollution News Blog | Drs Steve and Deonie Allen
Plastics and Waste
Waste management
More than 8.3 billion tonnes of plastic has been produced since the early 1950s (UNEP, 2018). This large amount of plastic production and the increase of single use plastics has led to plastic to become a waste management issue. Indeed, about 60% of the plastic produced since 1950 has ended up in either a landfill or the natural environment. In this section, find out relevant information on the waste management of plastic waste.
- How sustainable packaging can reduce plastic waste | Alex Thornton | World Economic Forum | 2 December 2020 |
- Geneva Beat Plastic Pollution Dialogues | Plastics and Waste | Geneva Environment Network | 26 November 2020
- SGP on plastic waste: All you need to know about the selected projects | Basel Convention | 12 November 2020
- End plastic waste trade for a healthier future | Inger Andersen | Bangkok Post | 9 November 2020
- Reuse – Rethinking Packaging | Ellen MacArthur Foundation & New Plastics Economy | 13 June 2019
- Basel Convention Plastic Waste Amendments | Basel Convention | 10 May 2019
- Need a bag? A review of public policies on plastic carrier bags – Where, how and to what effect? | Tobias Dan Nielsen, Karl Holmberg, et al. | Waste Management | 15 March 2020
- Addressing single-use plastic products pollution | UNEA 4 | UNEP | 13 March 2019
- Single-use plastics: A roadmap for sustainability | UNEP | 5 June 2018
Marine Litter and Microplastics
Of the approximately 275 million metric tons of plastic waste produced annually, up to 12 million tons leak into oceans, wreaking havoc on livelihoods and ecosystems (CIEL, 2020) . The result is an estimated $13 billion in annual environmental damage to marine ecosystems. Plastics are everywhere now even in the deepest part of the oceans. If current trends continue, our oceans could contain more plastic than fish by 2050. Learn more about this issue in this section.
- What we need to know about PPE associated with the COVID-19 pandemic in the marine environment | Gabriel E. De-la-Torrea & Tadele Assefa Aragaw | Marine Pollution Bulletin | February 2021
- Putting an end to marine plastic pollution | Joao Sousa | IUCN | 7 January 2021
- Water pollution by plastics and microplastics: a review of technical solutions from source to sea | Josiane Nikiema, Javier Mateo-Sagasta, et al. | UNEP | 17 December 2020
- Confronting Ocean Plastic Pollution | John Briley | PEW | 16 November 2020
- Over 200,000 tonnes of plastic leaking into the Mediterranean each year – IUCN report | IUCN | 27 October 2020
- The hidden threat of plastic leachates: A critical review on their impacts on aquatic organisms | Kuddithamb yGunaalan, Elena Fabbri, et al. | Water Research | 1 October 2020
- Breaking the Plastic Wave: Top Findings for Preventing Plastic Pollution | PEW | 23 July 2020
- Polystyrene nanoplastics accumulate in ZFL cell lysosomes and in zebrafish larvae after acute exposure, inducing a synergistic immune response in vitro without affecting larval survival in vivo | Irene Brandts, Marlid Garcia-Ordoñez, et al. | Environment Science: Nano | 22 July 2020
- ‘More masks than jellyfish’: coronavirus waste ends up in ocean | Ashifa Kassam | The Guardian | 8 June 2020
- Briefing on Marine Litter and Microplastics | Geneva Environment Network | 21 January 2020
- The ocean’s ultimate trashcan: Hadal trenches as major depositories for plastic pollution | Guyu Peng, RichardBellerby, et al. | Water Research | 1 January 2020
- World Migratory Bird Day: birds globally threatened by plastic waste | UNEP News | 9 May 2019
- Marine plastic litter and microplastics | UNEA 4 | UNEP | 15 March 2019
- High-level Dialogue on Marine Litter ahead of UNEA4 | Geneva Environment Network | 14 February 2019
- Our plastic future | can the oceans survive? | Geneva Environment Network | 2 April 2019
- Research highlights true impacts of plastics on our planet, ecosystems, people | UNEP News | 12 March 2019
- Microplastics contaminate the deepest part of the world’s ocean | X. Peng et al. | Geochimal Perspectives Letters | 27 November 2018
- Addressing Marine Plastics: A Systemic Approach – Stocktaking Report | UNEP | 28 February 2018
- Mapping of global plastics value chain and plastics losses to the environment – with a particular focus on marine environment | UNEP | 2018
- International policies to reduce plastic marine pollution from single-use plastics (plastic bags and microbeads): A review | Dirk Xanthos & Tony R. Walker | Marine Pollution Bulletin | 15 May 2017
- Healthier oceans for better lives | Geneva Environment Network | 9 June 2016
Plastic Recycling
Only 9% of all plastic produced by humanity has been recycled and only 14% of plastic waste is currently being collected for recycling (UNEP, 2019). As plastic disposal in landfill and burning has damaging consequences on human and environmental health, recycling is increasing seen as having huge potential to tackle the plastic crisis. However, plastic recycling presents huge challenges due to the nature of the material itself. Learn more about this issue in this section.
- The Plastic Pandemic: COVID-19 trashed the recycling dream | Joe Brock | Reuters Special Report | 5 October 2020
- Recycling isn’t enough — the world’s plastic pollution crisis is only getting worse | Stephanie B. Borrelle | The Conversation | 17 September 2020
- Recycling of European plastic is a pathway for plastic debris in the ocean | George Bishop, David Styles & Piet N.L. Lens | Environment International | September 2020
- “Can I recycle this?” A Global Mapping and Assessment of Standards, Labels and Claims on Plastic Packaging | Consumers International & UNEP | 19 May 2020
- ‘Plastic recycling is a myth’: what really happens to your rubbish? | The Guardian | 17 August 2019
- The Global Environmental Recycling Crisis: What Options Exist for Plastic Waste? | Charlotte Collins | Climate Institute | 10 August 2019
- IEH GUEST Lecture | The truth about plastics recycling and international trade | Geneva Environment Network | 8 May 2019
- Plastic recycling: an underperforming sector ripe for a remake | UNEP | 2 January 2019
Biodegradable Plastics
Estimates show that almost 80% of all plastic ever produced has ended up either in landfills or in the natural environment (Geyer, Jambeck & Lavender Law, 2017). Although biodegradable plastics are often proposed as a solution to reduce damage on the environment, their potential to address the crisis on the long-term remains limited. This section provides relevant information on the nature and challenges of biodegradable plastics.
- The battle over biodegradable plastics | Eline Schaart | Politico | 1 January 2021
- Biodegradable plastics: Green hope or greenwashing? | Jingkun Zhu & Can Wang | Marine Pollution Bulletin | December 2020
- Biodegradable Plastics: Standards, Policies, and Impacts | Dr. Layla Filiciotto & Prof. Dr. Gadi Rothenberg | ChemSusChem | 28 October 2020
- Are biodegradable plastics a promising solution to solve the global plastic pollution? | Maocai Shen, Biao Song, et al. | Environmental Pollution | August 2020
- Why biodegradables won’t solve the plastic crisis | Kelly Oakes | BBC | 5 November 2019
- Environmental Deterioration of Biodegradable, Oxo-biodegradable, Compostable, and Conventional Plastic Carrier Bags in the Sea, Soil, and Open-Air Over a 3-Year Period | Imogen E. Napper & Richard C. Thompson | Environmental Science and Technology | 28 April 2019
- Plastic waste as a global challenge: are biodegradable plastics the answer to the plastic waste problem? | Tanja Narancic & Kevin E. O’Connor | Microbiology | 30 November 2018
- Biodegradability standards for carrier bags and plastic films in aquatic environments: a critical review | Jesse P. Harrison, Carl Boardman, et al. | Royal Society Open Science | 23 May 2018
- The Truth About Bioplastics | Renee Cho | Earth Institute, Columbia University | 13 December 2017
Plastics and Air pollution
Transforming fossil fuel into plastic resins and additives releases highly toxic substances into the air. Moreover, all plastic waste management technologies result in the release of toxic substances to the air, water, and soils.
- Microplastics in glaciers of the Tibetan Plateau: Evidence for the long-range transport of microplastics | Yulan Zhang, Tanguang Gao, et al. | Science of the Total Environment | 1 March 2021
- Geneva Beat Plastic Pollution Dialogues – Plastics, Climate and Air Pollution | Geneva Environment Network | 10 December 2020
- What are the drivers of microplastic toxicity? Comparing the toxicity of plastic chemicals and particles to Daphnia magna | Lisa Zimmermann, Sarah Göttlich, et al. | Environmental Pollution | December 2020
- Atmospheric transport, a major pathway of microplastics to remote regions | N. Evangeliou, H. Grythe, et al. | Nature Communications | 14 July 2020
- Plastic rain in protected areas of the United States | Janice Brahney, Margaret Hallerud, et al. | Science | 12 June 2020
- Examination of the ocean as a source for atmospheric microplastics | Steve Allen, Deonie Allen, et al. | PLoS ONE | 12 May 2020
- Atmospheric microplastics: A review on current status and perspectives | Yulan Zhang, Shichang Kang, et al. | Earth-Science Reviews | April 2020
- Plastic waste poisons Indonesia’s Food Chain | Jindrich Petrlik, Yuyun Ismawati, et al. | December 2019
- Widespread distribution of PET and PC microplastics in dust in urban China and their estimated human exposure | Chunguang Liu, Jia Li, et al. | Environment International | July 2019
- Simulating human exposure to indoor airborne microplastics using a Breathing Thermal Manikin | Alvise Vianello, Rasmus Lund Jensen, et al. | Scientific Reports | 17 June 2019
- How Does Plastic Cause Air Pollution? | Alice Fortuna | rePurpose | 5 May 2019
- Plastic bag bans can help reduce toxic fumes | UNEP | 2 May 2019
- Atmospheric transport and deposition of microplastics in a remote mountain catchment | Steve Allen, Deonie Allen, et al. | Nature Geoscience | 15 April 2019
- Plastic & Health: The Hidden Costs of a Plastic Planet | CIEL | February 2019
- Inhaled cellulosic and plastic fibers found in human lung tissue | J.L. Pauly, S.J. Stegmeier, et al. | Cancer Epidemiology Biomarkers and Prevention | May 1998
Plastics and Climate Change
By 2050, the greenhouse gas emissions from plastic could reach over 10 to 13 percent of the entire remaining carbon budget (CIEL, 2019). Plastic is hence threatening the ability of the global community to keep global temperature rise below 1.5°C.
- Geneva Beat Plastic Pollution Dialogues – Plastics, Climate and Air Pollution | Geneva Environment Network | 10 December 2020
- How plastics contribute to climate change | Brooke Bauman | Yale Climate Connections | 20 August 2020
- Plastic & Climate: The Hidden Costs of a Plastic Planet | CIEL | May 2019
- Double trouble: plastics found to emit potent greenhouse gases | UNEP News | 24 August 2018
Plastics and Human Rights
Recent studies and reports have identified quite a large number of human rights impacts and outright violations throughout the life cycle of plastics. Learn more on this issue in this section.
- Geneva Beat Plastic Pollution Dialogues – Plastics & Human Rights | Geneva Environment Network | 14 January 2021
- Statement by the Special Rapporteur on toxics and human rights to the Ad hoc Open-ended Expert Group on Marine Litter and Microplastics (AHEG-4) | SR Toxics | OHCHR Special Procedures | 13 November 2020
- SEA circular Issue Brief 01: A human rights-based approach to preventing plastic pollution | Sea Circular | March 2020
- Marine plastic litter in East Asian Seas: Gender, human rights and economic dimensions | UNEP, COBSEA & SEI | 11 November 2019
Plastics and Health
Humans are exposed to a large variety of toxic chemicals and microplastics through inhalation, ingestion, and direct skin contact, all along the plastic lifecycle. According to WWF on average people could be ingesting approximately 5 grams of plastic every week, which is the equivalent weight of a credit card. According to various civil society organizations, plastic threatens human health on a global scale. Learn more about it in this section.
- Does plastic makes us sick? | Plastic Health Coalition
- Plasticenta: First evidence of microplastics in human placenta | Antonio Ragusa, Alessandro Svelato, et al. | Environment International | January 2021
- 7 Harmful Chemical Types in Plastics | IPEN & The Endoctrine Society | 2020
- Five Harmful Chemical to Watch Out For in Plastics | The Endoctrine Society | 16 December 2020
- Insights into nanoplastics effects on human health | MarianaTelesa, Joan Carles Balasch, et al. | Science Bulletin | 15 December 2020
- Plastics, EDCs & Health: Authoritative Guide | Endocrine Society and IPEN | 10 December 2020
- Human Health and Ocean Pollution | Philip J. Landrigan, John J. Stegeman, et al. | Annals of Global Health | 3 December 2020
- Plastic’s Toxic Additives and the Circular Economy | The Stockholm Regional Center (Barcelona), BRS MEAs, UNEP MAP & IPEN | 25 September 2020
- WHO calls for more research into microplastics and a crackdown on plastic pollution | WHO | 22 August 2020
- Plastics Waste Poisons Indonesia’s Food Chain | IPEN | December 2019
- Is plastic a threat to your health? | Harvard Women’s Health Watch | December 2019
- What’s in your bathroom? The hidden plastics in your beauty products | UNEP News | 12 November 2019
- Revealed: plastic ingestion by people could be equating to a credit card a week | WWF | 12 June 2019
- Plastic & Health: The Hidden Costs of a Plastic Planet | CIEL | February 2019
- Bisphenol A and human health: a review of the literature | Rochester JR. Reprod Toxicol. 2013 Dec;42:132-55 | 30 August 2013
- Impact of plastics on human health and ecosystems | Arizona State University | 20 March 2010
- Components of plastic: experimental studies in animals and relevance for human health | Talsness, Chris E et al. Philosophical transactions of the Royal Society of London. Series B, Biological sciences vol. 364,1526: 2079-96 | 2009
- Inhaled cellulosic and plastic fibers found in human lung tissue | Pauly, J. L., Stegmeier, S. J., Allaart, H. A., Cheney, R. T., Zhang, P. J., Mayer, A. G., & Streck, R. J. | Cancer Epidemiology Biomarkers and Prevention, 7(5), 419–428 | 1998
Plastics and Standards
A vast array of standards play a role in shaping the plastics economy. In addition to standards on the design and characteristics of plastic products, there are standards on topics as diverse as the chemical composition of plastics and the labeling of products. An array of intellectual property standards also shape the plastics market, regulating matters such as the ownership of trademarks, industrial designs, copyright and patents on plastics and technologies relevant to waste management.
- Biodegradable Plastics: Standards, Policies, and Impacts | Dr. Layla Filiciotto & Prof. Dr. Gadi Rothenberg | ChemSusChem | 28 October 2020
- Can I Recycle This? A Global Mapping and Assessment of Standards, Labels and Claims on Plastic Packaging | UNEP & Consumers Interniatonal | 2020
- ISO 17422:2018(en)Plastics — Environmental aspects — General guidelines for their inclusion in standards | ISO | June 2018
Plastics and Mountains
Plastic pollution is now everywhere from the Mount Everest to the Mariana Trench. Find out how plastic ended-up in remote parts of the mountains in this section.
- Reaching New Heights in Plastic Pollution—Preliminary Findings of Microplastics on Mount Everest | Imogen E. Napper et al. | One Earth | 20 November 2020
- Atmospheric transport and deposition of microplastics in a remote mountain catchment | S. Allen et al. | nature geoscience | 15 April 2019
- International Mountain Day | Plastic in the Mountains | Geneva Environment Network | 11 Dec 2018
Towards a Green Economy without Plastics
As plastics have major environmental and health impacts, many initiatives, projects and governance responses and options have been developed to tackle this major environmental problem.
- Upstream Innovation: a guide to packaging solutions | Ellen MacArthur Foundation | 19 November 2020
- The global state of plastics | WWF | 9 October 2019
- Accountability can reverse plastic pollution crisis, says WWF report | WWF | 5 March 2019
- Africa is on the right path to eradicate plastics | UNEP News | 30 July 2018
- The state of plastics: World Environment Day Outlook 2018 | UNEP | 5 June 2018