To solve the climate crisis, we need to tackle plastic pollution

Plastic pollution poses serious environmental and health risks through the spread of microplastics in our food, water and even the air. It’s contributing to climate change in a massive way, too.

These two crises are fundamentally interconnected, and it’s critical we address them together.

‍The Carbon Footprint of Plastics Is Expanding Rapidly

It all starts with how plastics are made. Most comes from fossil fuels like oil and natural gas. Extracting, transporting, and refining these materials isn't just energy-intensive; it also releases a lot of greenhouse gases (GHGs). These emissions are a big part of why plastics are bad news for the climate. A study by the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory shows that global production of primary plastics generated about 2.24 gigatonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e) in 2019, representing 5.3% of total global GHG emissions. Assuming plastic production grows by 4% per year, those emissions will increase more than three times to 6.78 GtCO2e by 2050, accounting for 25% to 31% of the global carbon budget we have left if we want to keep global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius. 

‍Plastic are “Forever Fuels” For Greenhouse Gases

But the problem doesn't stop during production. As plastic breaks down, whether in landfills or as litter, they release gases like methane and ethylene. These gases are even more potent than carbon dioxide when it comes to trapping heat in the atmosphere. What's worse is that plastics don't break down quickly; they stick around for hundreds of years, continuously emitting these harmful gases while polluting ecosystems.

‍Ocean Plastics Are Clogging Our Biggest Carbon Sink

The story gets even more complicated when you consider plastics in the ocean. Oceans play a crucial role in absorbing CO2 from the atmosphere, but plastics are disrupting this process. Research shows that the growing prevalence of microplastics is reducing the ocean’s ability to help offset the climate crisis by slowing down the rate at which carbon is taken from the sea surface to the depths.  The ‘carbon sink’ process happens when dead phytoplankton form clumps that fall to the bottom of the ocean in what some scientists called ‘marine snow’. New studies show that microplastics in the ocean are making that ‘marine snow’ more buoyant. This disruption reduces the ocean's ability to absorb CO2, creating a feedback loop that worsens global warming.

‍What Can We Do?

Tackling plastic pollution and its climate impact requires a mix of solutions. We need to reduce our use of single-use plastics, improve recycling and waste management systems, and promote alternative materials. 

We also need to channel financing into emerging markets, which are at the centre of the plastic waste crisis. Half of the top 10 countries contributing to plastic leakage to rivers and seas are located in ASEAN, according to the World Bank. 

The lack of waste management and recycling infrastructure, waste colonialism and the proliferation of single use plastics and plastic sachets, which offer basic goods in small units to cater to a population with a low average income, have all contributed to the problem. 

The UN estimates we need $1.64 trillion to beat plastic pollution by 2040. A market-based mechanism like credits, which facilitates the recovery of plastic waste and encourages the private sector to make investments into collection, recycling and upcycling infrastructure, makes both economic and environmental sense. 

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