UN warns recycling alone won't solve plastic pollution
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The UN's environment chief stresses that recycling will not solve the pollution crisis the world is facing, calling for consideration of the material's usage all in all.
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A child sits inside a canoe with empty plastic bottles he collected to sell for recycling in the floating slum of Makoko in Lagos, Nigeria, on Nov. 8, 2022. (AP)
As plastic production surges globally, leading to increased pollution, the UN's environment chief warned against relying solely on recycling and called for a fundamental reconsideration of plastic use, AFP reports.
"There are different sort of onramps to the highway to solutions. But I think everybody recognizes that the status quo is just not an option," Inger Andersen, the executive director of the UN Environment Program, told AFP.
Andersen's comments come two weeks following the release of the initial draft of an upcoming global agreement on plastic pollution, set to be completed by late 2024.
This draft mirrors the diverse goals of the 175 participating nations, highlighting the divide between those advocating for reduced raw polymer production and those emphasizing the importance of reuse and recycling.
First, Andersen emphasized the goal of minimizing the use of single-use plastics, aiming to "eliminat[e] what's frankly not necessary: that thing that is wrapped in plastic that's completely mindless, that is maybe even wrapped by nature itself," like an orange or a banana.
Next, "there is thinking about the product itself. Does the product need to be liquid? Can we rethink the product... can it be powder, can it be compressed, can it be concentrated?"
"We also have to reduce the overall supply of new raw polymer," she said, noting that this was one option in the draft text of the treaty.
"We have to recycle as much as we can. But as we look at it now, plastic uses is increasing," Andersen observed.
"So what is clear is that we cannot recycle our way out of this mess."
Read more: Microbes capable of digesting plastics at low temperatures discovered
Over the last two decades, plastic production has witnessed staggering growth, surging to a whopping 460 million tons annually, more than twice its previous levels. If current trends persist, this production could triple by 2060.
Despite this massive output, only a mere nine percent of plastic gets recycled. The consequence is pervasive plastic waste, spanning from the depths of oceans to the stomachs of birds and even adorning mountain peaks. Furthermore, microplastics have infiltrated diverse ecosystems, including human biology, with traces detected in blood, breast milk, and placentas.
"If we continue to pump into the economy all this new raw polymer, there is no way that we will stop the plastic flow into the oceans," she said, adding that the ocean's health is crucial for the survival of humanity.
The upcoming treaty addressing plastic pollution is set to complement the worldwide efforts aimed at safeguarding the oceans, aligning with recent milestones such as the historic agreement to protect the high seas, which was signed this week by approximately 70 nations.
"The fact that we're going to move forward and protect that piece of the ocean that is beyond national boundaries is mind-blowingly important," Andersen said.
"And something that I'm just very, very happy about. And the whole world should be because this is our common heritage."
Read more: A wasted planet gone on sale
