This article explains how big the problem is today, why it keeps growing, and the role that verified recovery of marine litter and the interception of ocean-bound waste—before it reaches the Ocean—can play.

Production outpaces systems

Since the 1950s, plastics have grown exponentially. By 2016, annual plastic production reached ~396 million tonnes (Mt). More than half of all virgin plastic ever made was produced after 2000. Across the entire period to 2017, approximately 6,300 million tonnes (Mt) of plastics had already become waste; 12% was incinerated, 9% recycled (and only a fraction more than once), while roughly four-fifths accumulated in landfills or the environment. Packaging is the single largest demand segment, close to 40% of plastic consumption; short product lifetimes in this segment translate quickly into waste.

Low prices and single-use designs shorten use to minutes or days, so items quickly become waste. Multi-layer packaging and some additives make sorting and recycling difficult. Collection and treatment capacity has expanded more slowly than plastic production. For these reasons, waste keeps rising even where per-capita consumption is stable.

Waste generation and leakage

In 2019, an estimated 6.1 million tonnes of plastic waste entered rivers, lakes and the Ocean. As of 2019, cumulative stocks were roughly 109 million tonnes stored in rivers and about 30 million tonnes already in the Ocean. Because transport through watersheds is slow, plastic accumulates upstream; these stocks will continue to fragment into microplastics and nanoplastics, increasing dispersion and recovery costs.

Most plastic reaches water because waste is mismanaged: open dumping, uncontrolled landfills and informal burning leave materials exposed to wind and rain. Short-lived products, especially packaging, account for most of this leakage. Once in rivers and canals, lighter pieces float and travel with surface currents; heavier or water-logged items sink or get stranded along coastal areas. Storms can lift and move stranded items again, spreading them further.

Where waste becomes pollution

Along coastal areas, ocean-bound waste accumulates at river mouths, in ports and on densely populated shorelines. In the sea, floating items, ghost gear and debris on the seabed persist for years and continue to move with currents. Because plastics remain in water and in sediments (layers of particles that settle on the seabed), the legacy stock already present matters as much as new inputs. Addressing the problem requires both prevention upstream—reduction, reuse and design for recycling—and action downstream—collection, sorting, safe disposal and verified recovery where waste meets water and in marine environments.

Ogyre acts as a principal actor where waste becomes pollution. Its Fishing for Litter–based network of local fishers in Italy, Brazil, Indonesia and Senegal works in two zones aligned with the problem described above: in the sea, crews bring ashore debris encountered during regular trips (floating items, ghost gear, seabed debris); along coastal areas, teams intercept ocean-bound waste at river mouths, ports and busy beaches before it reaches marine environments. This dual focus reduces the residence time of both legacy stocks and new leakage. All collected materials are delivered to certified cooperatives for sorting, recycling or responsible disposal, with priority given to the most sustainable option available locally.

Each batch is weighed, geotagged and recorded on a blockchain registry (a tamper-resistant digital ledger). Independent reviews check the evidence. Verified data are decision-grade, enabling plastic footprint recovery and finance to target under-served collection points and route materials to the best end-of-life locally, strengthening the circular economy.

Scale is the headline: hundreds of millions of tonnes produced annually, with legacy stocks stranded in rivers and the Ocean. Because leakage pathways are slow and cumulative, waiting magnifies harm and cost. A credible response ties prevention to verified recovery where waste meets water and in marine environments. Intercept earlier, remove what persists, and document outcomes with transparency: this is how action aligns with the real scale of plastic waste.

• European Environment Agency – EEA (2020), Plastics, the Circular Economy and Europe’s Environment – A Priority for Action link
• Ogyre (2025), Ogyre Protocol link
• Ogyre (2025), Ogyre Code of Conduct link
• OECD (2022), Global Plastics Outlook link
• United Nations Environment Programme – UNEP (2024), Global Waste Management Outlook 2024 link
• United Nations Environment Programme – UNEP (2023), Turning off the Tap: How the world can end plastic pollution and create a circular economy link
• WWF (2022), Impacts of Plastic Pollution in the Oceans on Marine Species, Biodiversity and Ecosystems link

👉 How does mismanagement fuel marine pollution? link

👉 How does plastic enter the Ocean? link

👉 What is marine litter made of? link

👉 How to classify micro and macroplastics? link

👉 Floating vs. seabed plastic: which is worse? link