Plastic waste inputs from land into the ocean

This interactive map shows plastic waste inputs from land into the ocean in 2010 by country, shaded according to various parameters related to plastic waste generated by populations living within 50 km of the coast. Because people’s activities nearest the coast are responsible for most of the plastic going into the water, data analysis is limited to a 50km strip of the coastline. <br />Plastic debris in the marine environment is widely documented, but the quantity of plastic entering the ocean from waste generated on land is unknown. By linking worldwide data on solid waste, population density, and economic status, the mass of land-based plastic waste entering the ocean is estimated. 275 million metric tons (MT) of plastic waste was calculated as generated in 192 coastal countries in 2010, with 4.8 to 12.7 million MT entering the ocean. Population size and the quality of waste management systems largely determine which countries contribute the greatest mass of uncaptured waste available to become plastic marine debris. Without waste management infrastructure improvements, the cumulative quantity of plastic waste available to enter the ocean from land is predicted to increase by an order of magnitude by 2025.<br /><br />Source: <a href='http://jambeck.engr.uga.edu/landplasticinput' target='_blank'>University of Georgia</a>