The industrial production of plastic began around 1950 and has increased exponentially in the years since, substantially exceeding that of any other manufactured material. A 2020 study published in the scientific journal, Nature, shows that the weight of all plastics produced (8,000 million tons) is twice that of the biomass of all animals on Earth (4,000 million tons). Four years later, the weight of plastics has exceeded 10,000 million tons and, according to calculations made by the Scientists' Coalition for an Effective Plastics Treaty, following this trajectory, in 2040 it will exceed 20,000 tons.
Over the same period of time, scientists have observed an "unprecedented" decline in biodiversity with about 1 million animal and plant species now threatened with extinction, many of them within a few decades, a number never before reached in human history. This biodiversity crisis has many causes, including the loss and fragmentation of natural habitats, but it is also greatly exacerbated by pollution and global warming. The United Nations have adopted the term "Triple Planetary Crisis" to describe these three intersecting global environmental crises: pollution, climate crisis, biodiversity loss and/or ecological crisis.
The production of plastic materials is considered by scientists to be the main indicator of plastic pollution. In fact, a study published in the journal Science estimated that less than 30 percent of all items made from plastics since 1950 are still in use, about 7 percent have been recycled, 10 percent incinerated, and the remainder, just under 60 percent, have been discarded and are now in landfills or dispersed in natural environments, terrestrial and marine.
The toxicity debt
When scientists talk about "plastics", they are not only referring to plastic polymers, but they also include other chemicals that make up synthetic fibers and chemical additives used to achieve desired qualities (e.g., heat resistance, flexibility, etc.), many of which are toxic to living organisms. The fragmentation of plastics in the environment, combined with the release of chemical additives from these plastics, leads to a potential future spike in the release of toxic compounds (including chemical additives and nanoplastics).
According to a study published in the journal, Environmental Science and Technology, we are already experiencing a period of toxicity debt closely linked to the long-term effects of plastic material degradation and pollutant release. According to the authors, this "debt" is contracted by the presence in the environment of large amounts of plastic currently exposed to degradation and which will still undergo decomposition processes and will release toxic compounds for many years to come. Thus, it is not a question of future plastic pollution, but of the current state of pollution from plastics already present in the environment, to whose damage the impact of any future pollution will evidently be added.
Diseases and social and economic costs associated with plastics
“Plastics contain many hazardous, endocrine-disrupting chemicals that leach and contaminate humans and the environment. These chemicals disturb the body’s hormone systems and can contribute to cancer, diabetes, reproductive disorders, neurological impairments of developing fetuses and children, and death” explains to Renewable Matter Leonardo Trasande M.D., M.P.P., of NYU Grossman School of Medicine and NYU Wagner Graduate School of Public Service in New York, N.Y.
Despite these negative effects on human health, many states that base their economies on fossil fuel extraction are reluctant to include provisions in the Global plastics treaty that would limit the primary production of plastics, more than 99 percent of which are made with chemicals from fossil fuels.
To accurately inform about the trade-offs involved in the continued reliance on plastics production as a source of economic productivity in the United States, Trasande and colleagues conducted a study, published in January 2024 in the Journal of the Endocrine Society, in which they calculated the disease burden (i.e., the burden a disease has on a population in terms of mortality, disability, social and economic costs) and attributable costs due to chemicals used in plastics materials in the United States in 2018. "Our study found that plastics contribute substantially to disease and associated social costs in the United States, about $250 billion in 2018 alone. These costs are equivalent to 1.22 percent of Gross Domestic Product" Trasande tells Renewable Matter.
The expert explains that the methodology used in the study can be extrapolated to global disease burdens that still do not sufficiently incorporate environmental exposures with substantial evidence of causation. "The Global Plastics Treaty should reduce the use of chemicals of concern, particularly PFAS, bisphenols, flame retardants and phthalates," Trasande concludes.
Chemicals of concern in all types of plastics
Published in mid-March 2024, the State-of-the-science on Plastic Chemicals report provides a thorough and comprehensive overview of the current scientific understanding of the chemical aspects of plastics, including hazards, functionalities, uses, production volumes, and regulatory status of plastic chemicals. The report summarizes scientific information on more than 16,000 chemicals potentially used or present in plastic materials and products, of which only 6 percent are currently subject to international regulation, although a much greater number are produced in large quantities and have high exposure potential.
More than 4200 plastic chemicals are of concern because they are persistent, bioaccumulative, mobile, and/or toxic (PBMT). Over 1300 chemicals of concern are known to be marketed for use in plastics and 29–66% of the chemicals used or found in well-studied plastic types are of concern. This means that chemicals of concern can be present in all plastics types. This means that chemicals of concern may be present in all types of plastics. The report makes four recommendations: regulate chemicals in plastics comprehensively and efficiently; require transparency on which chemicals are used; simplify the composition of plastics so they are safe and sustainable; and promote technical and regulatory capacity to create safer and more sustainable plastics.
Reduction of primary plastic polymers is urgently needed
The UN Global Plastics Treaty, currently under negotiation, aims to reduce plastic pollution. But how to achieve that goal? "As a materials engineer, I recognize the merits of the plastics industry. However, we are not using it smartly," Francesca De Falco, a researcher at the International Marine Litter Research Unit at the University of Plymouth and a member of the Scientists' Coalition for an Effective Plastics Treaty, tells Renewable Matter. "As a Coalition, we have identified the five most important pathways for reducing primary plastic polymers in order to reduce impacts on human and environmental health: reduce production of non-essential ones; reduce production of unsafe and unsustainable ones; work on transparency and accountability of producers; improve compliance mechanisms; and follow a sectoral approach," says De Falco illustrating the recent Policy Brief Primary Plastic Polymers: Urgently Needed Upstream Reduction.
The researcher also explains that in the latest draft that will be used as the basis for the next round of negotiations, the reduction option is not always included and, when it is, it’s often between many parentheses. "It is important that these reduction options stand, that global reduction targets are clarified, and that there are mechanisms to ensure their implementation. To reduce plastic pollution", De Falco explains, "downstream solutions, while important, cannot solve the problem on their own. Reducing plastic pollution requires working on multiple fronts simultaneously and the reduction of primary plastic polymers is a key measure."
This article is also available in Italian / Questo articolo è disponibile anche in italiano
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