Plastic waste expert Mark Miodowonik explains the history of plastic and why he believes manufacturers must be responsible for making sure plastic is recycled.
Every year, 400 million tons of plastic are produced worldwide, and every year, approximately 57 million tons of plastic pollution is created. And yet in November, the latest round of negotiations on the first legally binding international treaty on plastics pollution ended without an agreement.
In 1907 a chemist called Leo Bakerland invented a new type of rigid, synthetic plastic. He called it bakelite, and it was quickly seized upon by the modernism movement. By the 1970s, scientists working in plastic manufacturing companies were sounding alarms about all the plastic making its way to landfill and how long it took to degrade. But little action was taken, says Miodowonik.
Few plastic manufacturers have faced consequences for their inaction, though these days, there seems to be more of a collective will to take action against them. In September 2024, the US federal government successfully sued Keurig, the company that makes those little plastic pods that produce one cup of coffee or tea, for claiming that those pods are recyclable when they’re not. Keurig paid US$1.5 million in penalties.
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