Plastic pollution

Plastic pollution is what happens when plastic is thrown away or lost and ends up in places it should not be: streets, gutters, canals, farmland, rivers, beaches and the ocean. Plastic does not rot like food or paper. It breaks into smaller and smaller pieces called microplastics, which can stay in the environment for a very long time.

The global picture, from the OECD's Global Plastics Outlook: plastic production doubled between 2000 and 2019 to 460 million tonnes, and plastic waste more than doubled to 353 million tonnes. Only about 9% of plastic waste was ultimately recycled. In 2019, about 6.1 million tonnes leaked into rivers, lakes and seas, and about 1.7 million tonnes flowed into the oceans. Plastics also account for about 3.4% of global greenhouse gas emissions, mostly from making them from fossil fuels.

• Single-use items such as bags, foam food packs, disposable cups and sachets, used for minutes and discarded.
• Weak collection and disposal. Plastic that is not collected ends up in drains, open dumps and waterways.
• Low recycling. Many types of plastic waste are not wanted by recyclers, so they are not collected.
• Heavy plastic supply. Nigeria imported more than 20 million tonnes of plastics and plastic products between 1996 and 2017, according to the Heinrich Böll Foundation's Plastic Atlas Nigeria, on top of local production.
• Littering and open burning. Plastic that is dumped or burned pollutes land, water and air.
• Limited rules and enforcement. Few countries have strong, enforced systems that make producers responsible for the packaging they sell.

• Blocked drains and flooding. Plastic and other litter clog gutters and canals, so rainwater cannot drain away. This is a direct link to flooding in Nigerian cities.
• Harm to animals. Fish, birds, turtles and livestock can swallow plastic or get tangled in it.
• Microplastics in water and food. Tiny plastic particles are now found in water, seafood and even human bodies. Scientists are still studying the full health effects.
• Toxic smoke. Burning plastic releases harmful fumes that affect people nearby.
• Lost livelihoods. Polluted waterways and beaches hurt fishing and tourism.
• Climate impact. Plastic is made from oil and gas, and its production, burning and breakdown all add to emissions.

• Refuse what you do not need. Skip bags, straws and foam packs when you can, and carry a reusable bag, bottle and food container.
• Choose reusable over disposable for drinks, takeaway and shopping.
• Keep plastic out of drains. Never throw plastic into gutters, canals or rivers.
• Sort and sell. Keep clean plastic bottles and containers separate and give or sell them to waste pickers or recycling aggregators. In Lagos, LAWMA's Blue Box programme supports separation at source.
• Never burn plastic.
• Reuse before you recycle. Bottles, buckets and containers can often be reused for years.
• Join or organise a clean-up in your street, school, church or market, and make sure the collected waste goes to a proper disposal or recycling point.
• Support businesses and policies that reduce packaging and take responsibility for their waste.

• Scale. Nigeria generates about 2.5 million tonnes of plastic waste a year, according to the Federal Ministry of Environment and other reports, and about 70% of it ends up in landfills, sewers, beaches and water bodies. Reliable data is limited and estimates vary. Nigeria is ranked among the world's top ten countries for mismanaged plastic waste, and the Heinrich Böll Foundation has put it as high as sixth. The World Bank estimated it accounts for about 2.7% of global mismanaged plastic waste.
• Mismanaged and recycled. The Plastic Atlas Nigeria reports that over 850,000 tonnes of plastic waste are mismanaged each year, more than 130,000 tonnes reach water bodies annually, and less than 10% of plastic waste is recycled. Other recent reporting puts recycling in the low teens. Either way, most plastic is not recycled.
• Lagos. Lagos generates an estimated 870,000 tonnes of plastic waste a year. Lagos State banned Styrofoam (foam) takeaway containers and other single-use plastics, and state officials said full enforcement began in 2025. LAWMA runs the Blue Box recycling programme, and the Food and Beverage Recycling Alliance (FBRA) is Nigeria's first packaging Producer Responsibility Organisation, working with brands and recyclers. Analysts say clearer targets and more consistent funding are still needed.
• National policy. The proposed National Policy on Plastic Waste Management aims to phase out single-use plastic bags and Styrofoam by 2028 and to make all plastic packaging recyclable by 2030. It has been under consideration for years, and federal lawmakers have called for a nationwide single-use plastics ban. Abia State and other states have followed Lagos with their own measures.
• Informal workers. Waste pickers and informal collectors, many of them women, supply much of the plastic that reaches Nigerian recyclers, and they are part of any workable solution.
• Climate pledge. Nigeria's NDC 3.0 includes commitments to scale up recycling and cut open waste burning by 40%.