Recycled Plastic Is More Toxic Than Original Parts, Can Lead To Microplastic Pollution, Greenpeace Warns: Report

Greenpeace said in a report that the recycled plastics end up with higher concentrations of toxic chemicals. This multiplies their potential harm to human, animal and environmental health. 

Amsterdam-based independent global campaigning network Greenpeace has warned that recycled plastic is more toxic than the original components, contributes significantly to microplastic pollution, and is not a solution to environmental pollution. Greenpeace issued the warning in a report, ahead of the network's latest round of negotiations for an international plastics treaty, The Guardian reported. 

The report by Greenpeace mentioned findings of different studies that show recycled plastics are more toxic than their original parts. The Greenpeace report said that plastics are "inherently incompatible with a circular economy", according to the Guardian report. 

Research has also shown that breaking down plastics for recycling introduces microplastics to the environment. 

Negotiations between representatives from 173 nations for a plastics treaty

In 2022, representatives from 173 countries agreed to develop a legally binding treaty that covers the "full lifecycle" of plastics from production to disposal. They decided last year that the treaty will be negotiated over the next two years, the report said. 

The representatives will meet in Paris next week to discuss the treaty. However, their talks have been subject to criticism for excluding communities in developing countries that suffer due to the dumping and burning of plastic waste, and also marginalised waste pickers, who are key players in the recycling process, the report said. 

Many fear that the negotiations will revolve around the interests of corporate players due to the absence of important voices like marginalised waste pickers and communities from developing countries. 

Recycling increases plastic toxicity

Quoting Graham Forbes, the leader of Greenpeace USA's global plastics campaign, the Guardian report said the plastics industry, including fossil fuel, petrochemical and consumer goods companies, continues to put forward plastic recycling as the solution to the plastic pollution crisis. 

Forbes explained that the toxicity of plastic increases with recycling, plastics have no place in a circular economy, and it is clear that the only real solution to ending plastic pollution is to massively reduce plastic production. 

Recycling plastics can harm living beings and the environment

About eight billion tonnes of plastic have been generated since the 1950s, the Guardian report said. 

The Greenpeace report, which includes peer-reviewed research and international studies, has mentioned that only a tiny proportion (9%) of plastics are ever recycled. Also, the recycled plastics end up with higher concentrations of toxic chemicals. This multiplies their potential harm to human, animal and environmental health. 

Which chemicals do recycled plastics contain?

The Greenpeace report explained that recycled plastics often contain higher levels of chemicals such as benzene, toxic flame retardants, carcinogens, environmental pollutants including brominated and chlorinated dioxins, and endocrine disruptors. These can negatively impact the natural hormone levels in the body. 

High-income countries usually send their plastic waste to low-income countries for recycling. 

Quoting Dr Therese Karlsson, a science adviser with the International Pollutants Elimination Network (IPEN), the Guardian report said plastics are made with toxic chemicals, and these chemicals do not simply go away when plastics are recycled. She explained that science clearly shows that plastic recycling is a toxic endeavour with threats to the health of living beings, and the environment, all along the recycling stream.

Karlsson also said that plastic poisons the circular economy and bodies of living beings, and pollutes air, water and food, and hence, one should not recycle plastics that contain toxic chemicals. 

How the plastic crisis can be managed

The plastic crisis can be managed through global controls on chemicals in plastics, and significant reductions in plastic production, she said.

By 2060, plastic production may triple, according to forecasts. It is important for any global plastics treaty to achieve immediate significant reductions in plastic production, as a first step on a pathway to the total elimination of the manufacture of virgin plastic, Greenpeace said, according to the report.

The environment network also said that the plastics which remain in the environment must be reused as far as possible, and waste disposal technologies must be developed that do not involve simply burning the plastic or burying it.