Ending plastic waste

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India has the highest rate of recycling plastic waste in the world. India recycles 60% of its plastic waste whereas developed countries like the U.S. recycle only about 10 %. According to data, 91% of plastic waste isn't recycled. By 2015, 6.3 billion metric tons of plastic waste had accumulated. Scientists are estimatinig that by 2050 there will be more plastic in the ocean than fish.

An entrepreneur in India wanted to do something about plastic waste several years ago and found that there were 2,000 informal recyclers on street corners in Hyderabad alone. He decided to form them into groups and train them to separate the pure plastic from the pollutants. He then set up a milk cooperative to make plastic milk bottles. India became the best recycler of milk in the world.

If a poor country like India can recycle plastic waste into a money-making industry, how much more developed countries like the U.S. ought to be able to do this. We certainly have the scientists and businessmen capable of creating the machinery and investing in this field. It could provide thousands of jobs as well as cut plastic pollution drastically.

Most of us who are conscious of recycling have containers in which we place our plastic bottles. We have a place to send them. But what happens to them afterwards? Do they just go to a landfill or are they actually making useful products? One use is buiilding roads with recycled plastic. Plastic roads have proven to be more durable than asphalt. We need to find more ways to use recycled plasttic creatively. India is leading the way!