El plástico y la salud

The report details how plastic production and incineration contribute significantly to global greenhouse gas emissions across four life cycle stages: extraction and transport, refining and manufacturing, waste management, and environmental degradation. It projects that by 2050, cumulative emissions could reach over 56 gigatonnes of CO2e, consuming 10% to 13% of the remaining carbon budget. The document concludes that reducing plastic production and use is the only effective way to mitigate these climate impacts.

• In 2019, the production and incineration of plastic were estimated to release over 850 million metric tons of greenhouse gases, which is equivalent to the emissions from 189 coal-fired power plants of 500 megawatts.
• If current growth trends continue, annual emissions from plastic could reach 1.34 gigatonnes by 2030 and 2.8 gigatonnes by 2050, the latter being equivalent to 615 coal-fired power plants of 500 megawatts.
• Cumulative greenhouse gas emissions from plastic by 2050 are projected to exceed 56 gigatonnes of CO2e, representing between 10% and 13% of the total remaining carbon budget required to limit global warming to 1.5°C.
• In the United States, fossil fuel extraction and transport for plastic production emitted between 9.5 and 10.5 million metric tons of CO2e annually in 2015, while global emissions from ethylene cracking in 2015 ranged from 184.3 to 213.0 million metric tons of CO2e.
• Incineration is identified as the primary driver of emissions within plastic waste management; in 2015, plastic incineration in the US emitted an estimated 5.9 million metric tons of CO2e.
• Plastic in the environment contributes to climate change by releasing methane and other greenhouse gases as it degrades, and microplastics may impair the ocean's biological carbon pump by reducing the carbon-fixing capacity of phytoplankton and the survival of zooplankton.
• The report argues that low-ambition solutions such as bio-based or biodegradable plastics do not address life cycle emissions and may worsen environmental and health impacts.

APA

Center for International Environmental Law (n.d.). El plástico y la salud. https://www.ciel.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/ciel-ES-GHG-Spanish-10.19-01.pdf

Chicago

Center for International Environmental Law. El plástico y la salud. n.d. https://www.ciel.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/ciel-ES-GHG-Spanish-10.19-01.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Center for International Environmental Law |title=El plástico y la salud |url=https://www.ciel.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/ciel-ES-GHG-Spanish-10.19-01.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{centerforinternationalenvironmentallawndplstico, author = {{Center for International Environmental Law}}, title = {{El plástico y la salud}}, institution = {Center for International Environmental Law}, url = {https://www.ciel.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/ciel-ES-GHG-Spanish-10.19-01.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }