Center for International Environmental Law

Plastic & Health

Plastic & Health: The Hidden Costs of a Plastic Planet

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Despite being one of the most pervasive materials on the planet, plastic and its impact on human health is poorly understood. Human exposure to it grows with increasing plastic production and use. Research into the human health impacts of plastic to date have focused narrowly on specific moments in the plastic lifecycle, from wellhead to refinery, from store shelves to human bodies, and from disposal to ongoing impacts as air pollutants and ocean plastic. Individually, each stage of the plastic lifecycle poses significant risks to human health. Together, the lifecycle impacts of plastic paint an unequivocally toxic picture: plastic threatens human health on a global scale.

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Plastic & Health: The Hidden Costs of a Plastic Planet [English]

Хуванцар ба Эрүүл мэнд [Mongolian]

Executive Summary:

Two pager:

English A4

Key Graphics:

Figure 2: Plastic & Health: The Hidden Cost of a Plastic Planet
Figure 6: Main Plastic Resin Types and Applications in Food Packaging
Figure 7: Toxic Exposure from Incineration
Figure 8: Multiple Pathways for Human Exposure to Microplastics Through Seafood

Table of contents:

Executive Summary
Chapter 1: Introduction
Chapter 2: Extraction and Transport
Health Impacts
Air Pollution
Ozone
Frontline Community Impacts
Mental Health and Human Rights
Risks to Children, Infants, and Pregnant Women
Water
Pipelines
Chapter 3: Refining and Manufacture
Human Health Impacts of Chemicals involved in Plastic Production
Hazardous Air Pollutants
Chemical Clusters and Risk of Accidents
Community Engagement and Access to Information
External Factors: Extreme Weather Events
Threats to Workers in the Plastic Industry
Chapter 4: Consumer Use
Plastic Particles, Plasticizers, and Other Chemical Additives
Plasticizers Used in Plastic and Other Consumer Products
Potential Threats Associated with Accumulated Pollutants on Plastic Particles
Food Packaging Chemicals
Human Body Burden
Routes of Human Exposure to Microplastic Particles
Drinking Water as a Source of Human Exposure to Microplastics
Toxicity of Microplastic Particles to Cells and Tissues
Uptake and Translocation Across the Gut
Chapter 5: Plastic Waste Management
Waste-to-Energy
Waste Incineration Industry Targets Asian Markets for Growth
Environmental Health Impact of Waste Incineration
Toxic Emissions from Burning Plastic
Toxic Byproducts Of Incineration On Land And Water
Plastic-to-Fuel
Low Feasibility and Recent Trend of Failures
Environmental Health Impact
Other Routes and Unknowns
Chemical Recycling
Waste-Based Road and Building Materials
Chapter 6: Plastic in the Environment
Ingesting Plastic
Fish and Shellfish
Seaweed
Salt
Other Food and Drink
Microplastics in the Food Chain
Impact on Human Health
Microplastics and Toxic Chemicals
Microplastics and the Potential for Disease
Ingesting Microplastics
Inhaling Microplastic
Toxicity of Inhaled Plastic Particles
Plastic in Agricultural Soils
Chapter 7: Conclusions and Recommendations
Known Knowns
Known Unknowns
Recommendations

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