Since its commercial development in the 1950s, plastic has been a real success.

Its global production is growing exponentially. Its success comes from its
remarkable qualities: ease of shaping, low cost, mechanical resistance, etc. Being
the ideal material for packaging, plastic is basically everywhere.

But what are the causes of plastic pollution?

P ollution comes mainly from household waste, which is poorly recycled, dumped
in landfills or abandoned in nature. This waste is carried by the winds, pushed by
the rains into sewers, streams, rivers, and finally in the oceans.

This pollution can have harmful effects on the land and rivers by
affecting wildlife and habitat, but also on human health.

Photo by freestocks.org on Pexels

Almost all plastic is derived from materials (like ethylene and propylene) made from fossil
fuels (mostly oil and gas). The process of extracting and transporting those fuels, then
manufacturing plastic creates billions of tonnes of greenhouse gases. For example, 4% of
the world's annual petroleum production is diverted to making plastic, and another 4% gets
burned in the refining process.

Once the plastics are released into the environment, they continue
to impact the climate in longer run. Unless they are recycled, which
the vast majority are not.
Over 90% of plastics are not recycled, according to a major study
published in 2017. Most of this waste is landfilled, while 12% is
burnt to ashes. In addition, millions of tons of plastic trash end up in
the ocean each year.
Despite a growing awareness of the problem, demand for plastics
has not come down. People bought over 300 million tons of new
plastic in 2014, a figure that’s expected to more than double by
2030, according to research agency.