Part 2 of 5
When the numbers ADD UP!
I have a confession to share with you – maths is not my forte.
In fact, I once had to ask for help in actually saying a long number correctly. So, if you are a numerophile, mathophile, logophile, algephile or simply a math aficionado, please forgive these basic numerics.
Origin of Plastic
So, where does all this plastic come from? That is a really good Question!
The majority of plastic objects on OUR Planet Earth originate from the PetroChemical Industry
If we look at the figures for Crude Oil extraction, under this definition “Crude and Condensate“, the numbers are phenomenal. Total world oil production in 2023 averaged
81,804,000 barrels per DAY!
The level of oil production reached an all-time high in 2023. This equates to
35,040,000,000 barrels a YEAR!
So, here are some STATS:
These are the figures for crude oil production as at December 2023. USA topped the producers at over 13,308,000 barrels per day, followed by Russia at 10,272,000 barrels per day.
In December 2024, the USA remained the top producer, followed by Saudi Arabia who substantially increased their oil production. Russia had also increased production levels in this year to remain in the top three fossil fuel producers.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_oil_production
In terms of weight, in 2023, global crude oil production amounted to approximately
4.5 billion metric tons.
This was the largest amount that had ever been produced and nearly one billion metric tons more than oil produced in 1998.
According to Wikipedia, the content of each barrel of oil is used as follows:-
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oil_refinery#
11% Other Products. This is a significant figure!
“IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature) is a membership Union of government and civil society organisations. Together, we work to advance sustainable development and create a just world that values and conserves nature.” According to IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature)
•Over 460 million metric tons of plastic are produced every year for use in a wide variety of applications.
•An estimated 20 million metric tons of plastic litter end up in the environment every year .
Year after Year
Over half of every barrel of crude oil drilled for gasoline produced creates ‘by-products’. There are an estimated 6000 + items made from crude oil. Many are large volume single use plastic. A growing number are recognised as pollutants and potentially TOXIC to humans, living creatures and the environment
So, how is all this plastic made? That is a really good question!
Next ….. The Chemical Science of Plastics
A narrated video version of these posts, less the chemistry, is available on YouTube
Claudia Bow 
1 thought on “Plastic Pollution2 – WE are the Solution”