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plastic overshoot day
'Progress Almost Invisible': World Set to Produce 220 Million Tonnes of Plastic Waste
"The question for every government now is this—will you negotiate a treaty to protect the health of your people; or will you negotiate a treaty to protect the profits of the fossil fuel industry?"
Apr 11, 2024
A report released Thursday estimates that countries worldwide are on pace to generate 220 million tonnes of total plastic waste this year, a finding that comes as governments are set to convene in Ottawa, Canada later this month to hash out a binding global treaty to limit the toxic pollution that is inundating waterways and communities across the planet.
The new report from EA – Earth Action (EA) projects that Plastic Overshoot Day—the point at which the amount of plastic waste produced exceeds the capacity of global management systems—will arrive on September 5 this year. Over a third of the total plastic waste created this year will end up in nature, according to the analysis.
On average, each person globally contributes 28 kilograms of plastic pollution per year. Previous research has shown that just 20 companies are responsible for more than half of the world's total single-use plastic waste.
"The findings are unequivocal; improvements in waste management capacity are outpaced by rising plastic production, making progress almost invisible," EA co-CEO Sarah Perreard said in a statement Thursday, criticizing the "assumption that recycling and waste management capacity will solve the plastics crisis."
That assumption has been peddled for decades by the fossil fuel industry, which has a major interest in thwarting attempts to curb the production, use, and waste of plastics. Nearly all plastic is made from chemicals sourced from fossil fuels.
Sian Sutherland, co-founder of A Plastic Planet, said the new report underscores that "plastic pollution has set humanity on the road to ecological and humanitarian disaster."
"We have a narrow window of opportunity this year to create a global plastics treaty that will protect not only our ocean, our air, our soil but our own children," said Sutherland. "The question for every government now is this—will you negotiate a treaty to protect the health of your people; or will you negotiate a treaty to protect the profits of the fossil fuel industry? Viable solutions are already available at scale, giving us materials and systems that work in harmony with nature, not against it."
"Close to 50% of the world's population currently lives in areas where waste generated has already exceeded the capacity to manage it."
Late last year, the third round of U.N. plastics treaty talks ended without a breakthrough as major oil-producing countries such as Saudi Arabia obstructed the proceedings, the fossil fuel industry worked to sabotage the negotiations, and the U.S. declined to forcefully push for a global pact that meaningfully curtails plastics production.
The U.S. is among the world's leading generators of plastic waste, producing nearly 100 kilograms per capita each year. The U.S. and other rich nations also export tremendous amounts of plastic waste around the world, undercutting efforts to tackle the pollution crisis.
A Greenpeace International survey released earlier this month found that two-thirds of the U.S. public wants a global plastics treaty that bans single-use plastic packaging. A separate poll commissioned by WWF and the Plastic Free Foundation showed that 88% of global citizens support banning "unnecessary single-use plastic products" such as shopping bags.
In an op-ed for Euronews Green on Thursday, Perreard of EA wrote that "whilst policy has been mooted, schemes devised, and initiatives launched, plastic has continued to rise, and our planet and its people have sat under an ever-darkening cloud of pollution that showers its toxic consequences upon us."
"Close to 50% of the world's population currently lives in areas where waste generated has already exceeded the capacity to manage it, with the figure projected to rise to 66% by 5 September," Perreard noted. "With the fourth round of negotiations in Ottawa at the end of this month, we can no longer ignore the facts, we can no longer afford to resist the change that should be set in motion through the treaty."
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Plastic Overshoot Day Spotlights Growing 'Climate Nightmare' of Global Waste
"Simply praying that we can recycle our way out of this problem will not cut it," said former Unilever CEO Paul Polman, an outspoken critic of plastic waste.
Jul 28, 2023
68,642,999 tons.
That's the amount of plastic expected to wind up in the environment across the globe this year as the amount of waste generated by humans and giant corporations continues to grow exponentially.
On Friday, according to the advocacy group Earth Action, the planet reached Plastic Overshoot Day, the point at which the amount of plastic waste overwhelms the world's capacity to manage it.
In a report released earlier this month, Earth Action noted that "in the first 208 days of 2023, plastic waste is well-managed, meaning it is collected and then either recycled, incinerated, or deposited in a sanitary landfill."
Beyond that point, waste management systems are swamped by the sheer volume of plastic, causing millions of tons to spill over into the natural environment—inundating communities, waterways, and oceans with toxic waste.
"Plastic pollution is a waste crisis, a climate nightmare, and a public health disaster in the making," Paul Polman, former CEO of Unilever and an outspoken critic of plastic waste, said in a statement. "Earth Action's report is a stark reminder that our current, linear plastic waste management systems are not fit for purpose and there is an urgent need for policymakers and industry to implement robust waste management policies and invest in the infrastructure fit for the 21st century."
"Simply praying that we can recycle our way out of this problem will not cut it," Polman added.
In early June, world leaders concluded talks in Paris with an agreement to develop a first draft of a Global Plastics Treaty before their November meeting in Kenya, a nation besieged by plastic waste.
Euronews observed Friday that "many of the highest plastic waste producers in the world are from the Global South—partly because they are also having to take in and process the waste of richer countries."
Earth Action found that "people living in Iceland are the top generators of plastic waste, with a yearly consumption of 128.9 kg per person," an amount that's "50 times higher than the yearly consumption per person in Bangladesh who consumes 2.59 kg."
"The amount of plastic produced is expected to double in the coming years, which will triple the volume of plastic pollution."
Environmental groups have long implored world leaders to act aggressively to curb plastic pollution, a push opposed by the fossil fuel industry and other corporate interests. More than 99% of plastic is made from chemicals sourced from fossil fuels, according to the Center for International Environmental Law.
Reuters reported last year that "publicly, plastic industry groups representing firms like ExxonMobil Corp., Royal Dutch Shell Plc, and Dow Inc. have expressed support for a global agreement to tackle this garbage."
"Behind the scenes, however, these trade organizations are devising strategies to persuade conference participants to reject any deal that would limit plastic manufacturing, according to emails and company presentations seen by Reuters, as well as interviews with a dozen officials involved in the negotiations," the outlet noted.
The Plastic Waste Makers Index estimates that 100 single-use plastic producers are responsible for close to 90% of global plastic waste.
Earth Action warned in its report that "the amount of plastic produced is expected to double in the coming years, which will triple the volume of plastic pollution."
"It's time for action," the group added. "Together, we can work towards reducing plastic consumption, improving waste management systems, promoting sustainable alternatives, and advocating for policy changes to combat plastic pollution and protect our oceans and the environment for future generations."
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