Plastic pollution in the world’s oceans costs society between $500bn and $2.5tn annually, according to a study that set out to put a price on the damage caused to the marine ecosystem. The paper, published in Marine Pollution Bulletin, also found that plastic waste could cost up to $33,000 per mt in reduced environmental value. The calculations, which are based on 2011’s stock of plastic, estimated to be one mt, only cover the impacts on marine natural capital. The findings therefore represent a “lower bound” of the full economic costs of marine plastic, the authors noted.
Plastic pollution in the world’s oceans costs society between $500bn and $2.5tn annually, according to a study that set out to put a price on the damage caused to the marine ecosystem. The paper, published in Marine Pollution Bulletin, also found that plastic waste could cost up to $33,000 per mt in reduced environmental value. The calculations, which are based on 2011’s stock of plastic, estimated to be between 75-150 million mt, only cover the impacts on marine natural capital. The findings therefore represent a “lower bound” of the full economic costs of marine plastic, the authors noted.