Plastic is one of the most ubiquitous materials in the economy and among Earth’s most pervasive and persistent pollutants. So when developing policy responses to the plastic crisis, it is essential to look beyond plastics to adjacent sectors, such as the chemicals, waste, and petrochemicals industries. Simply put, plastics are fossil fuels in another form, and they are relevant in any discussion of chemicals and waste because management is governed by interconnected policy frameworks (e.g., SAICM) and treaties (e.g., the Basel and Stockholm Conventions).
Understanding plastics and where they come from
Plastics are synthetic materials made from the energy-intensive conversion of feedstocks (raw materials) or certain chemicals primarily derived from fossil fuels, including oil, gas, and coal. During production, monomers (shorter units of molecules) are bonded or ‘cracked’ into polymers (long, strong chain molecules that form the basic building blocks of plastics).
To give plastics specific properties, additives such as colorants, lubricants, plasticizers, flame retardants, and others are incorporated into the polymers during the manufacturing process. Other chemicals can also appear as non-intentionally added substances (such as impurities and manufacturing process leftovers). For this discussion, the term ‘plastic’ can refer to a wide array of polymers and products with different chemical compositions.
To learn more about the origins of plastics and the links between chemicals and plastics producers, you can explore CIEL’s ongoing series Fueling Plastics.
Plastics’ effect on health and the environment
Plastics do not break down in the environment, forcing them to accumulate in air, waterways, agricultural soils, rivers, and oceans. While there has been a growing awareness and concern for plastics in the oceans, that concern has more recently expanded to the impact of plastics on other ecosystems, food and water supplies, and human health. Research now shows that microplastics (pieces of plastic less than five millimeters long) and nanoplastics (pieces smaller than 1mm all the way to the nanorange) have penetrated every system. All sources of water, types of food, placentas of pregnant people, and human stool ever tested were found to contain micro or nanoplastics.
The issue is not limited to the presence of plastic particles.
Examining production, use, and disposal reveals health and environmental effects at every stage of the plastics life cycle, whether caused by the plastic itself or by additives and processing. The following is a brief overview of just some of those impacts:
Extraction and transportation
As discussed previously, plastics are fossil fuels in another form. Therefore, the health and environmental risks that result from oil and gas drilling must be considered. Once extracted, infrastructure, including pipelines, transports raw materials to refineries or directly to the market (depending on what is being extracted and for what purpose).
The release of hundreds of toxins during pumping or piping feedstocks can cause a wide range of effects, including:
- Damage to sensory organs such as the skin and eyes; effects on bodily systems, including the respiratory, nervous, and gastrointestinal; and the impairment of organs such as the liver and brain;
- Increased likelihood of cancer, neurological, reproductive, and developmental toxicity; and
- Impairment of the immune system.
Refining and Manufacture
To produce plastics, raw feedstocks must be turned into monomers like ethylene and propylene. They are then combined into polymers (like polyethylene (PE) and polyethylene terephthalate (PET)) and processed to incorporate other chemical additives such as antioxidants, heat stabilizers, plasticizers, flame retardants, and others. Raw polymers are produced and sold in various forms such as resins, granules, and tiny spheres called pellets. These are molded into plastic products. This process is referred to as refining and manufacturing.
Taken together, refining and manufacturing releases emissions that can impair the nervous system and cause reproductive and developmental problems, cancer, leukemia, and genetic impacts like low birth weight.
Fenceline communities located close to production sites and workers employed in the production facilities are acutely impacted by the daily threat of toxic exposure, potential accidents/incidents, or death.
Products and Packaging
Once plastics are manufactured, they can take a variety of forms, including packaging materials, electronics, components of building construction, and fabrics like polyester. Using plastic consumer goods exposes people to the toxic impacts of plastics. Microplastics and hazardous chemicals used in plastic products can contaminate the surrounding environment, including air, water, and food, and enter into the bodies of animals and human tissue. The ingestion and/or inhalation of microplastics shedding from products and hazardous additives leaching out of the plastic products can severely affect human health.
Hundreds of substances are used in plastic products, including substances of concern such as known or suspected carcinogens, and chemicals impacting development, fertility, and the endocrine system.
Waste Management
Only a small fraction of plastic waste is economically or technically viable to recycle (representing a mere 9% of all the plastic ever produced). The vast majority of our plastic waste enters the environment (via landfill or marine and terrestrial litter), and a smaller percentage is incinerated (12%). All methods result in the release of toxic metals, organic substances, acid gases, and other toxic substances into the air, water, and soil. Some of the toxins released by plastics are some of the most toxic substances on earth (dioxins and furans).
The inhalation of contaminated air, direct contact with contaminated soil or water, and ingestion of foods grown in an environment polluted with these substances lead to short and long-term severe health effects, in particular for workers and fenceline communities.
In the Environment
When plastic reaches the environment, it fragments into micro or nanoplastics, which contaminate and accumulate in food chains through agricultural soils, terrestrial and aquatic food chains, and the water supply. This environmental plastic can leach toxic additives or concentrate toxins and pathogens already in the environment, making them bioavailable again for direct or indirect human exposure.
The health impacts are similar to those experienced during the ingestion and inhalation of plastics at other stages of the life cycle. Once in the human body, microplastics can lead to chronic inflammation, cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, neurodegenerative diseases, cancer, and even stroke.
In 2019, CIEL worked with partners to publish reports examining the life cycle of plastics. To learn more about the impact on human health, see Plastics & Health: The Hidden Costs of a Plastic Planet.
Because plastics mainly derive from fossil fuel extraction, each stage of the plastic life cycle can also be a major source of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. To learn more about the connection between plastic and climate, read Plastics & Climate: The Hidden Costs of a Plastic Planet.
Addressing the plastics crisis in Africa is critical
Virgin plastic production continues to grow at a precipitous rate, and low and middle-income countries, including many in Africa, are now bearing the disproportionate burden of the resulting crisis. As a result, many countries are choosing to implement measures such as bans on single-use plastics or prohibitions on waste imports.
Rather than address the waste crisis domestically, the United States, Australia, and many European states continue to look for countries to offload their waste. Unfortunately, this often leads to waste dumping in countries that do not have the infrastructure to deal with it, creating massive landfills, polluting ecosystems, and more.
Despite African countries leading in plastic bans, the petrochemical and plastics industry lobby sees Africa as an opportunity for growth. Reports continue to emerge that they are targeting countries such as Kenya in an effort to weaken their national plastic regulation and to make them a new hub for chemicals, plastics production, and plastic waste that is generated in the United States.
Options for global governance
Although current treaties, conventions, and policy frameworks such as SAICM could play a role in tackling toxic additives or polymers, the response would be fragmented and limited by the narrow scope of each instrument, and would thus not be commensurate with the scale of the plastics crisis. For several years now, attention has turned to developing a holistic, international response to the plastics crisis, with many states supporting the creation of a new, global treaty on plastics.
At the time of writing, there are ongoing conversations regarding the potential building blocks of such a treaty. If designed correctly, such an effort would address the entire life cycle of plastics. In partnership with #BreakFreeFromPlastic, EIA, and GAIA, CIEL developed an outline of such an agreement. Convention on Plastic Pollution: Toward a New Global Agreement to Address Plastic Pollution highlights necessary pillars that include coordination with existing instruments such as the chemicals and waste conventions and a financial mechanism to support developing countries.
United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA) adopted a resolution in 2022, with a mandate to negotiate a plastics treaty – follow CIEL’s updates on www.ciel.org.
To learn more about the most recent global plastic policy updates, visit CIEL webpage Progress on Plastics.