The cost of plastic pollution in the world greater than India's GDP: WWF
23:42
Pollution, harmful emissions from manufacturing, and disposal costs for plastic produced in 2019 alone could be $3.7 trillion, according to WWF's report, warning of the environmental and economic burden of "apparently cheap" material.
Currently, more than 11 million metric tonnes of plastic end up in the ocean each year. Since the 1950s, about 8.3 billion tonnes of this material have been produced, of which 60 percent has been dumped in landfills or the natural environment, the analysis shows. It is estimated that small pieces of plastic kill over 1 million birds and 100,000 marine mammals each year.
Plastic production has almost doubled over the past two decades, the report shows, and its production costs in 2019 alone are more than India's gross GDP.
"Plastic appears to be a relatively cheap material given the market price plastic manufacturers pay for its original form," the WWF report reads.
As the authors added, this price does not take into account the full cost imposed on the entire life cycle of the plastic.
Unless coordinated international action is taken, experts estimate, the projected doubling of plastic production could result in a cost increase of up to $7.1 trillion by 2040, equivalent to about 85 percent of global health spending in 2018.
