In December last year, China effectively stopped the importation of waste in a more horrifying decision around the world, because the biggest importer of waste that has helped the planet for decades to get rid of its waste has been put to rest, while the world has to face what can be described as the plastic age.
Since 1988, China has imported half the amount of waste on the planet, such as single-use soda bottles, food wrappers and plastic bags, where a huge recycling industry is run.
The volume of China's imports of waste since 1992 to date, about 106 million tons, worth close to 58 billion dollars.
After the Chinese ban, the world will need to dispose of or recycle 111 million tons of plastic used by 2030, forcing major industrial nations, primarily the United States, to seek new ways to deal with their own garbage, researchers said.
The United States has sent more than 10 million tons of waste to China over the past three decades, finding that disposal of these waste by sending it out of the country, is much cheaper than the cost of recycling.
The process of separating garbage components is not easy, when it comes to dealing with millions of tons, especially since most of the waste comes without being separated from the source, which is often mixed with organic materials and residues of foods, minerals and glass.
The separation of waste requires enormous energy resources to operate recycling plants, as well as intensive labor to help separate different types of waste.
But China, which has a cheap labor, has found waste valuable treasure, as recycling has helped support the industrial sector, which uses plastics for most products.
China's economy has been rocketed, making the country think of improving the quality of life by reducing thermal emissions from plastic processing.
Industrial countries will need to deal with the new reality by reducing the use of plastics and replacing them with recyclable materials.
The decomposition of waste without recycling leads to the leakage of toxins into water sources, whether groundwater or surface, and contamination of the soil in a manner that affects the food cycle, as well as pollution of drinking water, and thus poses risks to the safety of people.
Waste incinerators also emit hazardous gases, which threaten human health with serious diseases, as well as the devastating impact on the environment.
