What Are the Consequences of Plastic Pollution?
Updated: Aug 20
Climate change is often directly associated with our CO₂ emissions. At the same time, plastic pollution remains less visible in our everyday lives and is often underestimated as a contributor to environmental disruption. Greenhouse gas emissions are widely identified as one of the main causes of climate change. While the greenhouse effect is a major issue, the disruption of marine and terrestrial ecosystems caused by plastic is another area where our actions can have a direct impact. Because plastic is so difficult to break down, it accumulates throughout our environment. It becomes embedded in soils, invades marine ecosystems and even enters our bodies. The consequences of this pollution are already visible and alarming.
Plastic production has continued to rise since 1950
Since the 1950s, the world has produced 9 billion tonnes of plastic. It was during this decade that the first mass-produced plastic products began to enter the market. Plastic is lightweight, highly resistant and inexpensive. As a result, it became widely manufactured and used across industries and businesses, particularly for single-use applications.
While plastic production contributed to economic growth after the Second World War, it has continued to increase exponentially ever since, and at an ever faster rate. From around one million tonnes produced in 1950, production rose to 100 million tonnes in 1985 and reached the staggering figure of just over 200 million tonnes in 2000.
Today, we produce nearly 400 million tonnes of plastic every year, and forecasts suggest that global production will exceed 600 million tonnes by 2030.
At the end of 2021, the WWF Foundation revealed that the true cost of plastic was ten times higher than its production cost. Why? Because global plastic production has reached such a scale that, in 2019, managing this difficult-to-degrade material cost the equivalent of India’s GDP, or $3.7 trillion.
This “hidden” cost leads many organisations and countries to avoid or limit its treatment and recovery. As a result, 79% of this massive production ends up as waste, heavily polluting seas and oceans.
Plastic pollution in marine environments
Plastic waste is among the most commonly collected types of litter in marine environments. This includes bottles, food packaging, bags, cups and lollipop sticks. In total, 10 million tonnes of waste enter the sea every year. In the Mediterranean Sea alone, around 600,000 tonnes of plastic waste are discharged each year — roughly equivalent to the total weight of 3,000 Boeing 747 aircraft.
Of the 79% of plastic waste that is not treated, only 0.5% floats on the surface of the sea. Around 39% floats between the seabed and the surface or in deep offshore waters. Another 33.7% is found along coastlines and in shallow waters, while 26.8% drifts in coastal waters. And these figures do not include microplastics found on beaches or waste lying at the bottom of the deepest parts of the oceans, which is extremely difficult to quantify.
The consequences of plastic pollution for underwater ecosystems include:
Damage to and destruction of the natural habitats of marine species.
Disruption of marine ecosystems, as species are transported by plastic across natural biogeographical barriers.
The death of around 100,000 marine mammals, which can suffocate, develop illnesses after ingesting plastic or suffer from exposure to the chemicals it contains.
A 2021 study found that 386 out of 555 fish species tested had ingested plastic, potentially contaminating the food chain.
The death of more than one million birds. According to a recently published study, more than a quarter of seabird deaths are linked to plastic consumption, as birds mistake plastic for organisms they normally eat.
A threat to the food supply of animals such as turtles. Large quantities of microplastics can accumulate in algae, which are a major food source for baby turtles.
In conclusion, no marine animal is completely protected from the consequences of plastic pollution. Because plastic is non-biodegradable, it continues to exist as microparticles throughout the oceans. And the problem is not limited to the sea: our entire environment is being affected by this contamination.
Plastic: an underestimated environmental pollutant
Climate change is now at the heart of public debate, but the threat posed by plastic pollution is also very real. Here are a few figures illustrating its harmful impact on the environment:
A study conducted by Orb Media on tap water contamination found that plastic microparticles were present in 81% of the water samples analysed around the world.
Incinerating plastic waste releases numerous toxic substances into the surrounding environment, including lead and mercury. Yet in 2015, 12% of plastic waste was treated in this way.
According to estimates from the European Commission, plastic production and incineration are responsible for 400 million tonnes of CO₂ emissions worldwide every year, around one-third more than France’s annual CO₂ emissions. Plastic therefore also contributes to greenhouse gas emissions.
Plastic pollution affects every part of our environment — air, water and soil — as well as everything that comes into contact with plastic and its derivatives. This is particularly concerning when it comes to human health.
The consequences of plastic pollution for human health
According to a team of Canadian researchers, an adult can ingest up to 52,000 plastic microparticles per year, depending on their lifestyle. This is sometimes compared with around 5 grams per week, roughly the weight of a credit card.
The widespread presence of plastic in our environment and in the air we breathe can pose a potential health risk to humans. Plastic is in constant interaction with our surroundings and can eventually enter the body through ingestion, including through the food chain, inhalation or direct contact.
Increasing numbers of plastic microfibres and microparticles have been detected in human tissues and the bloodstream. The smallest particles may potentially travel as far as the lungs. The possible health effects associated with this exposure may include:
effects on the immune and respiratory systems,
endocrine disruption,
reduced fertility,
increased cancer risks.
These potential health risks concern everyone, but particularly people exposed over long periods, such as workers in the plastics industry, people living near factories and frequent users of plastic products.
Children, infants and pregnant women can also be considered among the more vulnerable groups.
The effects of plastic pollution are real, but they are still not fully understood, which means their precise health impact remains difficult to assess.
We can never say it enough: the best waste will always be the waste we do not produce!
To learn more, read our article on what happens to our plastic waste.
