Plastic Waste

What is a circular economy for plastics?

Plastic pollution is entering our oceans at an alarming rate, damaging our marine environment and endangering local livelihoods. Globally, we are on track to add 53 million tons of plastic into the ocean every year by 2030 – about one cargo ships’ worth of plastics entering aquatic ecosystems every day (Borrelle et al.).

A circular economy is the only solution that can match the scale of the plastic pollution problem (Ellen MacArthur Foundation). A circular economy is restorative and regenerative by design; an economy that produces zero waste and instead reuses or recycles its byproducts. In the case of plastic, this means that plastic never becomes waste or pollution. This approach is not only vital to stop plastic pollution, but it also benefits society, the environment and the economy.