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Material flow analysis of plastic waste in the gulf co-operation countries (GCC) and the Arabian gulf: Focusing on Qatar
Summary
Researchers mapped how much plastic waste is produced and recycled across Gulf countries, finding that the region generates nearly 12 million metric tons of plastic yearly, but only about 23% gets recycled, much of the rest likely ends up polluting the Arabian Gulf's waters. This matters because plastic waste breaks down into microplastics that contaminate seafood and marine ecosystems, posing potential health risks to people who eat fish and seafood from these waters; notably, Qatar is doing better than its neighbors, recycling about 40% of its plastic waste.
Global plastic waste production has increased dramatically in recent years, both globally and regionally, having a multitude of adverse effects on the environment and human health. However, little attention has been directed to this problem in the Arabian Gulf region. This study aims to delineate and map the status of the plastic waste problem in the Gulf Co-operation Countries (GCC), with a focus on Qatar. The study focuses on the plastic waste in the marine environment, depicting the different types, sizes and shapes of plastic particles found in the Arabian Gulf. To depict the flow of plastic waste, a generic material flow diagram was built using a material flow analysis software named STAN, in which transfer coefficients were assigned based on existing scientific literature and estimations built on data from local industries and recycling facilities. The recovery and recycling efforts that have been made by the different GCC countries, in efforts to reduce plastic waste and minimize the risk of plastic on the environment are analyzed, too. Our analyses indicate that approximately 11.9 Mt ± 595.395 Kt of plastic waste is produced annually in the GCC region, of which only 23 ± 15% is recycled, indicating that improvements are yet to be made in the recovery, recycling and treatment of plastics in the region. However, in Qatar, a higher percentage of plastics (40 ± 10%) is recovered-recycled with efforts to treat plastics and reuse it to generate energy.