Legacy plastic production will continue to contaminate the environment – posing risks to humans and animals – even if UN targets to reduce new plastic production are met, scientists have said.
The UN is meeting this week to finalise the Global Plastics Treaty – a legally binding agreement that aims to end plastic pollution by 2040 that will introduce new rules to regulate how plastic is produced and consumed.
But researchers from the University of Cambridge, GNS Science in New Zealand and The Ocean Cleanup in the Netherlands have said that even if global production and pollution of new plastic is drastically reduced, the billions of tonnes of legacy plastic waste already in the environment will continue to break down into tiny particles called microplastics for decades or centuries.
These fragments contaminate oceans, land and the air we breathe, posing risks to marine life, food production and human health.
While the treaty’s initial discussions highlight prevention of plastic pollution, the researchers believe it overlooks the need to remove existing waste. This omission means microplastics will continue to accumulate, even if plastic pollution slows.
“The treaty is aiming to eliminate plastic pollution by 2040, but this goal is unlikely without stronger action,” said co-author Zhenna Azimrayat-Andrews, a PhD student at the University of Cambridge. “Even with a sharp reduction in plastic entering the ocean, existing debris will split into smaller pieces and persist for centuries.”
These microplastics are already harming marine ecosystems, degrading commercial seafood quality and disrupting critical ocean processes.
The researchers argue that plastic clean-up efforts must be prioritised alongside reduction targets. Strategies to remove plastics from terrestrial and marine environments, such as those targeting pollution in beaches and rivers, could help prevent microplastics from forming. In fact, a 3% annual removal of legacy plastic – combined with aggressive reduction measures – could significantly curb future contamination, the researchers said.
Without action to address legacy plastic, the treaty risks leaving behind a long-lasting problem for marine life and future generations. Experts are calling for clean-up efforts to become an equal pillar of the treaty, alongside prevention and recycling.
E+T recently looked at how plastic-eating microbes could be used as a key tool to help reduce the impact of plastics on the environment.
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