Over the last 60 years plastics production has increased manifold, owing to their
inexpensive, multipurpose, durable and lightweight nature. These characteristics have
raised the demand for plastic materials that will continue to grow over the coming
years. However, with increased plastic materials production, comes increased plastic
material wastage creating a number of challenges, as well as opportunities to the
waste management industry. The present overview highlights the waste management and
pollution challenges, emphasising on the various chemical substances (known as "additives")
contained in all plastic products for enhancing polymer properties and prolonging
their life. Despite how useful these additives are in the functionality of polymer
products, their potential to contaminate soil, air, water and food is widely documented
in literature and described herein. These additives can potentially migrate and undesirably
lead to human exposure via e.g. food contact materials, such as packaging. They can,
also, be released from plastics during the various recycling and recovery processes
and from the products produced from recyclates. Thus, sound recycling has to be performed
in such a way as to ensure that emission of substances of high concern and contamination
of recycled products is avoided, ensuring environmental and human health protection,
at all times.