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There are differing estimates of how much plastic waste has been produced in the last century. By one estimate, one billion tons of plastic waste have been discarded since the 1950s. [32] Others estimate a cumulative human production of 8.3 billion tons of plastic, of which 6.3 billion tons is waste, with only 9% getting recycled. [33] [34] [35]
[3] 1856: Parkesine, the first member of the Celluloid class of compounds and considered the first man-made plastic, is patented by Alexander Parkes. [4] 1869: John Wesley Hyatt discovers a method to simplify the production of celluloid, making industrial production possible. 1872: PVC was accidentally synthesized in 1872 by German chemist ...
By one estimate, one billion tons of plastic waste have been discarded since the 1950s. [50] Others estimate a cumulative human production of 8.3 billion tons of plastic, of which 6.3 billion tons is waste, with only 9% getting recycled. [51] It is estimated that this waste is made up of 81% polymer resin, 13% polymer fibers and 32% additives.
By using data on surface plastic concentration (pieces of plastic per km 2) from 1972 to 1985 (n=60) and 2002–2012 (n=457) within the same plastic accumulation zone, the study found the mean plastic concentration increase between the two sets of data, including a 10-fold increase of 18,160 to 189,800 pieces of plastic per km 2.
Plastic degradation in marine bacteria describes when certain pelagic bacteria break down polymers and use them as a primary source of carbon for energy. Polymers such as polyethylene (PE), polypropylene (PP), and polyethylene terephthalate (PET) are incredibly useful for their durability and relatively low cost of production, however it is their persistence and difficulty to be properly ...
WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The United States, one of the world's biggest plastic makers, will support a global treaty calling for a reduction in how much new plastic is produced each year in a major ...
BUSAN, South Korea (Reuters) -Countries negotiating a global treaty to curb plastic pollution failed to reach agreement on Monday with over 100 nations wanting to cap production while a handful of ...
From the start of plastic production through to 2015, the world produced around 6.3 billion tonnes of plastic waste, only 9% of which has been recycled and only ~1% has been recycled more than once. [6] Of the remaining waste, 12% was incinerated and 79% was either sent to landfills or lost to the environment as pollution. [6]