Plastic Pollution by Country 2022

Plastic pollution is a global problem. Humans have manufactured more than 8 billion tonnes of plastic since 1950, but only about 9 percent has been recycled; the rest has ended up in landfills.

Plastic may harm the ecosystem by seeping hazardous compounds into soil and groundwater, but it can also choke or kill animals who unknowingly consume the material.

Countries with a larger population tend to create more plastic garbage overall. However, this ranking changes substantially when the findings are filtered to identify the greatest producers per capita.

The Plastic Waste Producing Countries in the World’s Top 10 (Total million tons, 2016):

1. United States — 34.02
2. India — 26.33
3. China — 21.60
4. Brazil — 10.68
5. Indonesia — 9.13
6. Russia — 8.47
7. Germany — 6.68
8. United Kingdom — 6.47
9. Mexico — 5.90
10. Japan — 4.88

10 Countries with the Highest Per-Capita Production of Plastic Waste (kilograms per person, 2016):

1. Micronesia — 308.25
2. Bermuda — 205.93
3. Palau — 170.19
4. Faroe Islands — 167.53
5. Hong Kong — 163.45
6. Saint Kitts and Nevis — 150.01
7. Iceland — 144.80
8. Singapore — 143.96
9. Mongolia — 137.58
10. Puerto Rico — 134.10

Plastic pollution in the ocean

Although plastic garbage on land is an issue, a huge portion of it winds up in the seas, where it causes even more difficulties since it isn’t recycled, burnt (which produces pollutants), or sent to landfills.

Plastic in the water may harm certain species and is commonly mistaken for food by others, resulting in death.

When a baby Cuvier’s beaked whale came ashore in the Philippines in 2019, it quickly succumbed to its injuries and perished.

An autopsy indicated that almost 88 pounds (40 kilograms) of plastic rubbish had accumulated in the animal’s stomach throughout its life. In 2021, Greece had a similar disaster.

Plastic garbage per person in high-income nations tends to be processed more securely than in lower-income countries, creating more unmanaged waste plastic, which is more likely to wind up in the ocean.

Every year, between 4.8 and 12.7 million metric tonnes of plastic make their way into the ocean.

Still, a study conducted in 2017 found that 80 percent of the ocean’s mismanaged plastic comes from just five Asian countries: China (as well as Thailand, Vietnam, Indonesia, and the Philippines) and the United States. Similar findings were reported in updated research published in 2021:

The top 10 countries that contribute the most plastic waste to the ocean in 2021:

1. Philippines — 356,371
2. India — 126,513
3. Malaysia — 73,098
4. China — 70,707
5. Indonesia — 56,333
6. Brazil — 37,799
7. Vietnam — 28,221
8. Bangladesh — 24,640
9. Thailand — 22,806
10. Nigeria — 18,640

Profiles of plastic pollution in each country

China

China churned out 59.08 million tonnes of plastic garbage in 2010, almost twice as much as the second-largest generator, the United States (the United States at 37.83 million tons).

The U.K., on the other hand, has taken serious steps to reduce the production of plastic trash, promising to prohibit single-use, non-degradable bags in all major cities by the end of 2020 and in all towns and villages by the end of 2022.

There will also be a prohibition on single-use plastic straws by 2020.

There has been a roughly 28 million-ton drop in China’s total plastic garbage output by 2016, to 21.60 million tonnes (for comparison, U.S. production fell less than 4 tonnes during the same time).

Because of its low per capita plastic waste production in 2016, China has been ranked as an international leader in reducing its total plastic waste output.

United States

In 2016, the United States produced 34.02 million tonnes of plastic garbage, making it the greatest producer. More than six times as much plastic debris is thrown away in the United States than recycled, resulting in a significant increase in greenhouse gas emissions.

There’s a long history of plastic garbage being sent from North America and Europe to Asia, where it’s either repurposed or dumped in ways that aren’t always up to international environmental standards.

As a result, the amount of garbage created in the sending and receiving nations may seem exaggerated.

Germany

14.48 million tonnes of plastic garbage were generated in Germany in 2010, including 31.239,000 tonnes of litter that may have entered rivers. .46 kg of plastic garbage is generated by each German per day.

There has been a significant decrease in the country’s plastic garbage production by 2016. As part of a five-point strategy put forward by Germany’s Environment Ministry in 2018, they want to minimize the country’s plastic trash.

Brazil

Despite being the world’s fifth-largest nation, Brazil is also the country with the fourth-highest volume of plastic garbage production. Brazil creates roughly 10.68 million tonnes of plastic garbage each year.

Still, only 1.28 percent of this material is recycled, meaning that the vast majority is either burned, buried in landfills, or dumped into the ocean and land.

Japan

In 2016, Japan produced around 4.88 tonnes of plastic garbage. More than 18,000 kilometers of the shoreline may be found in Japan.

According to some critics, because Japan is so concerned about cleanliness, many items are packaged in many plastic layers. The government of Japan has set a new target of decreasing plastic use by 25% by the year 2030.

Pakistan

Since 2010, Pakistan’s plastic trash output has dropped from 6.41 million tonnes to 2.73 million tonnes, making it the 16th-largest plastic garbage producer in the world. Pakistan is also the world’s sixth-largest nation.

Approximately 55 million plastic bags are used in Pakistan each year. Plastic bags will no longer be manufactured, sold, or purchased in the United States beginning in August 2019.

Russia

Russian plastic trash output increased from 5.84 million tonnes in 2010 to roughly 8.47 million tonnes in 2016. It is one of just a few nations whose plastic waste production is rising rather than decreasing.

According to a study, the Kaliningrad region’s Baltic Sea beaches contain up to 36.3 pieces of microplastic per kilogram of dry silt. Russia’s size and population necessitate a larger-scale approach to combating plastic pollution, which has begun with local and volunteer-led initiatives.

Turkey

5.6 billion tonnes of plastic garbage were created in Turkey in 2010. In Turkey, 440 plastic bags are used per person each year. In an attempt to decrease plastic pollution, the government outlawed single-use plastic bags on January 1st, 2019, favoring reusable bags and paper bags.

Turkish liras have been reduced to 0.25 for the price of plastic bags (0.036 U.S. dollars).

Egypt

In 2010, Egypt ranked tenth for plastic garbage generation, dumping 5.46 million metric tonnes of plastic into the environment. Plastic garbage production in Egypt was the highest in the Arab world and the Mediterranean Sea’s major cause of pollution.

Also See: Oil Consumption by Country 2022

10 countries with the greatest plastic pollution in the world are as follows:

1. India (12,994,100 tons)
2. China (12,272,200 tons)
3. Philippines (4,025,300 tons)
4. Brazil (3,296,700 tons)
5. Nigeria (1,948,950 tons)
6. Tanzania (1,716,400 tons)
7. Turkey (1,656,110 tons)
8. Egypt (1,435,510 tons)
9. DR Congo (1,369,730 tons)
10. Thailand (1,361,690 tons)