Environmental Intelligence · Microplastics & Recycling

Sorted, Shipped, Dumped: The Plastic Lifecycle in Data

5g/week ingested. 9% recycled. 100% in your blood. Brain, placenta, lungs—confirmed 2024. Concentrations doubling every 10–15 years. Production tripling by 2060.

per person per week (upper est.)

Microplastic ingestion via water, food, salt, air. ~250g per year. Weight of a credit card each week. Source: WWF/Newcastle, 2019.

of all plastic ever made

Has been recycled. 79% accumulated in landfills or environment. 12% incinerated. Rate stagnant since tracking began. Source: OECD, 2022.

9.2B

tonnes produced since 1950

More than half since 2000. Annual production: ~415 Mt (2023). Projected: 1,231 Mt by 2060. Source: Geyer et al./OECD.

1974

year

Industry insider acknowledged “serious doubt” recycling could ever be economically viable. Promoted it anyway for 50 years. Source: NPR/Frontline, 2020.

Inside You: Where Microplastics Have Been Found (2022–2025)

100%

Brain

All samples tested positive. 7–30x higher than kidneys/liver. 50% increase from 2016–2024. Dementia patients: 3–5x more. Nature Medicine, 2024.

77%

Blood

17 of 22 donors. First detection in human blood. Polyethylene, PET, PVC identified. Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, 2022. Confirmed 2024.

100%

Placenta

62 of 62 samples. 6.5–790 µg/g. Polyethylene 54%, PVC 10%, nylon 10%. Higher in preterm births. UNM, Feb 2024.

4.5×

Arteries

Risk of MI/stroke/death with microplastics in carotid plaque. 34-month follow-up. First cardiovascular link. NEJM, March 2024.

100%

Testicles

23/23 human, 47/47 dog samples. Humans: 3x more than dogs. PVC linked to lower sperm count. 2024.

100%

Semen

40/40 samples from Chinese cohort. Mixed MP exposure linked to sperm dysfunction and blood-testis barrier disruption. eBioMedicine, 2024.

Where Plastic Goes: Fate of 9.2 Billion Tonnes

Accumulated (landfill + environment)

79%

~7.3B t

Incinerated

12%

~1.1B t

Recycled

~0.8B t

The Deception in Numbers

What the industry told you versus what the data shows.

1988

Chasing arrows introduced

but

1974

Industry knew recycling was unviable

15%

Collected for recycling

but

Actually recycled (40% lost as residues)

$20M/yr

Industry spent fighting bottle deposits

while

30:1

Outspending pro-recycling advocates

460 Mt

Global plastic use, 2019

projected

1,231 Mt

By 2060 (OECD). Nearly tripling.

17%

Projected recycling rate in 2060

meaning

830+ Mt

Still going to landfill/environment annually

The Poison in the Circle: PFAS in Recycled Packaging (2024)

PFAS compounds found in food packaging

Across 17 countries. 61 of 68 are specifically banned. 53.8% of 119 samples contained PFAS. Source: Food Packaging Forum / Env. Sci. & Technology, 2024.

4/12

Recycled paper packages contaminated

Unintentional PFAS contamination from the recycling process itself. The circular economy is circulating forever chemicals. 2024.

Feb 2024

FDA action

Grease-proofing PFAS will no longer be used in new US food packaging. Voluntary industry phase-out, not a ban. Existing stock remains in circulation.

“The earth plus plastic. The earth doesn’t share our prejudice towards plastic. Plastic came out of the earth.”

— George Carlin, Jammin’ in New York (1992)

The numbers behind the world’s most successful greenwashing campaign. Every data point above is sourced and verified. The caveats: the 5g/week figure is an upper estimate. The NEJM cardiovascular study shows association, not proven causation. PET recycling with deposit systems genuinely works. The problem is systemic, not universal—and the industry spent fifty years making sure you would blame yourself instead of them.

Campen et al., Nature Medicine (2024) · Marfella et al., NEJM (March 2024) · Leslie et al., Environment International (2022) · Garcia et al., Toxicological Sciences (Feb 2024) · OECD Global Plastics Outlook (2022) · OECD Policy Scenarios to 2060 (2022) · Geyer et al., Science Advances (2017) · WWF/Newcastle University (2019) · NPR/PBS Frontline “Plastic Wars” (2020) · Food Packaging Forum / Env. Sci. & Technology (2024)