NEWSROOM

As the use of plastic increases rapidly with the pandemic, the life of all living things is negatively affected. According to a report published by Greenpeace, Turkey has become the largest plastic waste dump in Europe, and the destruction caused by plastic waste in nature has become a topic of discussion. Online PR Service B2Press revealed the balance sheet of plastic usage with the data it compiled. While 381 million tons of plastic waste are generated annually, only 9% are recycled, and about 8 million plastic waste is dumped into the oceans every day.

*** This release is originally published in Turkish.
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İSTANBUL (TR) - The coronavirus pandemic, which has affected the whole world, has negatively affected life in all areas and triggered an increase in plastic waste. Due to months of restrictions and health concerns, the trend towards single-use bags and containers has increased. According to the data compiled by the Online PR Service B2Press, while 50% of 381 million tons of plastic waste generated in a year is used only once, more than 1.3 billion tons of waste is expected to be poured into the oceans and then landed in the next 20 years. As stated in the latest report published by Greenpeace, Turkey stands out as the new home owner of the waste generated in Europe, after some countries ban the export of plastic waste. According to Eurostat data, 659 thousand 960 tons of plastic waste came to Turkey in 2020, while this number has increased by 13% in the last year. While Turkey is at the top with 13.7 million tons in plastic waste imports, India comes second with 2.9 million tons.

8 million plastic waste a day goes to the oceans

Oceans, which correspond to 97% of the water in the world and are the habitat of millions of living species, are rapidly polluting. According to the data collected, the damage to marine life and ecosystem becomes irreparable with the spill of 8 million pieces of plastic every day and about 12.7 million tons of plastic waste into the oceans annually. While 79% of plastic waste is sent to landfills or the oceans, only 9% is recycled, the rest is incinerated. Wastes that cannot be recycled harm nature and all living things. While plastic is encountered in one of every three fishes that are caught; It is observed that 100% of the sea turtles examined, 59% of whales, 36% of seals and 40% of seabirds are affected by plastic waste. More than 1 million seabirds and 100,000 marine mammals die every year due to plastic waste thrown into the ocean.

China is the world's most polluting country

The data analyzed by the Online PR Service also reveal the countries that pollute the world the most. While plastic waste imports have increased 196 times since 2004, China, which produces the highest number of plastic materials worldwide, represents more than a quarter of global production. While Indonesia, Philippines, Vietnam, Sri Lanka and Egypt follow China, it is noteworthy that these 5 countries at the top of the list are responsible for 60% of plastic pollution in all oceans.