NextBillion - An Initiative of the William Davidson Institute at the University of Michigan

The world is producing twice as much plastic waste as two decades ago, with only 9% successfully recycled, according to a new OECD report.

Ahead of UN talks on international action to reduce plastic waste, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development’s (OECD) first Global Plastics Outlook suggests that as rising populations and incomes drive a ‘relentless increase’ in the amount of plastic being used and thrown away, policies to curb its leakage into the environment are ‘falling short’.

Almost half of all plastic waste is generated in OECD countries, according to the Outlook. Plastic waste generated annually per person varies from 221 kg in the United States and 114 kg in European OECD countries to 69 kg, on average, for Japan and Korea.

Photo courtesy of Stars Foundation.