A new global study has sounded the alarm over the environmental and climate consequences of continued reliance on fossil fuels for plastic production, warning that the world is making little to no progress on recycling.
A study released on Thursday in Communications Earth & Environment, conducted by researchers from Tsinghua University in China, shows that only 9.5 percent of the 400 million tonnes of plastic generated in 2022 was made from recycled materials a percentage that has not changed significantly over the years.
“This global recycling rate remained stagnant… reflecting little improvement from previous years,” the study noted, underscoring the widening gap between rising plastic production and environmental mitigation efforts.
Lead author Quanyin Tan and colleagues drew from national statistics, industry reports, and international databases to deliver what they describe as the “first comprehensive analysis” of the global plastics life cycle for 2022 from production to disposal.
They found that the overwhelming majority of plastic is still made using virgin materials derived from fossil fuels, primarily oil and gas. “The high reliance on fossil-fuel feedstocks for plastics production will further compromise the global efforts to mitigate climate change,” the authors warned.
The research comes at a pivotal time, as countries prepare to reconvene in August in Geneva for another round of negotiations toward a legally binding global treaty on plastic pollution — talks that previously stalled without resolution.
Economic factors remain a major stumbling block. “It is often cheaper to make new or ‘virgin’ plastic than it is to recycle it,” the study pointed out, noting that this cost disparity has discouraged investment in recycling technologies and infrastructure.
Contamination from food and labeling, along with the complexity of additives in plastic products, further complicate the recycling process. The authors called for a policy overhaul to address these technical and economic barriers.
The United States, labeled the world’s largest plastic consumer per capita, was singled out for its especially poor recycling record just five percent of its plastic waste is reused.
On a global scale, the report found landfill remains the most common end point for plastic waste (40%), but incineration is rapidly becoming the dominant method of disposal, particularly in the EU, China, and Japan.
“Burning is emerging as the most practiced method for managing plastic waste,” the authors noted, raising concerns over emissions and environmental impact.
The study also highlighted a glaring omission: the role of informal recycling sectors, especially in low-income countries. While these grassroots systems significantly affect waste management, they are largely untracked and unregulated, complicating efforts to assess true global recycling rates.
The findings echo those of a separate 2023 Nature study by the University of Leeds, which warned that open burning of plastic — often in poorer countries — was as damaging as littering due to toxic exposure and pollution.
With treaty talks set to resume, the researchers expressed hope that their work could inform global decision-making. “Our research aims to support the treaty negotiations by providing data-driven insights,” they wrote.
As the world grapples with mounting plastic pollution, the study makes one thing clear: progress will remain elusive without urgent economic, technological, and policy shifts.
