Plastic pollution poses a “grave, growing and under-recognised” danger to global health, costing the world more than $1.5 trillion annually, according to a new report published Monday in The Lancet medical journal.
The review, conducted by a team of leading international health researchers and doctors, paints a stark picture of the impact of plastic on human health, warning that exposure causes disease and death across all age groups, from infancy to old age. The authors are urging world leaders gathering in Geneva this week to finally secure an international treaty to combat plastic pollution, after previous negotiation rounds failed.
Dr. Philip Landrigan of Boston College, one of the report’s lead authors, said vulnerable groups — especially children, are disproportionately affected by plastic pollution. “It is incumbent on us to act in response,” he said. “To those meeting in Geneva: please take up the challenge and the opportunity of finding the common ground that will enable meaningful and effective international cooperation in response to this global crisis.”
Global plastic production has surged from just 2 million tonnes in 1950 to 475 million tonnes in 2022 and is projected to triple by 2060. Yet, less than 10 percent of plastic is currently recycled. Most plastic ends up in landfills, oceans, or the atmosphere, releasing toxic substances or breaking down into microplastics, tiny particles now found in food, water, and even human bodies.
The full health effects of microplastics are still being studied, but experts have expressed deep concern about their pervasiveness and potential long-term consequences.
The report also draws a direct connection between the plastic crisis and climate change. Because plastic is made from fossil fuels, its rising production contributes to greenhouse gas emissions. “There is no understating the magnitude of both the climate crisis and the plastic crisis,” said Landrigan. “They are both causing disease, death, and disability today and will cause even more harm as the planet warms.”
As part of the report, The Lancet announced a new initiative, the Lancet Countdown on Plastics, aimed at tracking and understanding the evolving health impacts of plastic pollution over time.
Delegates from nearly 180 countries are meeting this week in Geneva to resume talks on what could become the world’s first legally binding treaty to curb plastic pollution.
Written By Rodney Mbua
