Plastic pollution is no longer just a waste management issue it is becoming a climate-driven environmental crisis. A new global review published in Frontiers in Science finds that climate change is reshaping how plastics behave in the environment, making them more mobile, persistent and harmful across ecosystems.
The study, highlighted by the World Economic Forum brings together mounting evidence that rising temperatures, extreme weather events and shifting Earth systems are transforming plastic pollution into a dynamic, climate-sensitive threat.
Most plastics are produced from fossil fuels such as oil and gas, generating greenhouse gas emissions throughout their lifecycle from extraction and manufacturing to transport and disposal. As plastic production has surged since the mid-20th century, so have its associated emissions.
But researchers say the relationship runs both ways. Climate change is altering environmental conditions in ways that change how plastics break down, spread and interact with ecosystems.
Warmer temperatures, stronger sunlight and higher humidity accelerate the fragmentation of plastics into microplastics and nanoplastics. Extreme weather events including floods, storms, wildfires and coastal erosion can remobilize plastic waste from landfills, soils and riverbeds, carrying it into oceans and even into the atmosphere, where winds can transport particles across continents.
“This creates a reinforcing feedback loop,” the authors note. “Plastics contribute to climate change, and climate change amplifies the risks posed by plastics.”
One striking example involves sea ice. As ice forms, it traps and concentrates microplastics, temporarily removing them from surface waters. However, climate-driven ice melt could release these stored particles back into oceans in large quantities.
Rising temperatures also increase the release of chemical additives in plastics, such as plasticizers and flame retardants. At the same time, plastics can absorb and transport toxic contaminants like heavy metals and persistent organic pollutants. Warmer conditions may intensify the movement of these substances into food webs.
Impacts across land, freshwater and marine ecosystems
On land, microplastics in agricultural soils have been shown to interact with heat stress and elevated carbon dioxide levels in ways that may reduce crop yields and disrupt soil microbes essential for nutrient cycling.
In freshwater systems, organisms at the base of the food chain such as zooplankton show reduced survival and reproduction when exposed to both warmer water and microplastics. Fish exposed to higher temperatures may ingest more plastic and suffer greater toxic effects.
Marine ecosystems face particularly complex risks. Filter feeders such as mussels can experience digestive and immune stress when exposed to microplastics in warmer, low-oxygen or more acidic seawater.
Larger, long-lived species at the top of the food chain including orcas may be especially vulnerable because they accumulate plastics over time while also facing multiple climate-related pressures.
The findings challenge the common approach of treating plastic pollution and climate change as separate policy issues.
If climate change accelerates plastic breakdown, dispersal and toxicity, strategies focused solely on cleanup and end-of-life waste management will not be sufficient. Instead, researchers argue for integrated policies that align plastic reduction with climate action.
Reducing unnecessary single-use plastics, redesigning products for reuse and scaling up effective recycling systems remain the most reliable ways to limit long-term harm. Global standards for plastic materials, additives and waste management could also improve monitoring and reduce the offshoring of environmental impacts.
The study calls for a shift toward a circular plastics economy that keeps materials in use longer, minimizes waste and reduces emissions across the plastic lifecycle.
Ultimately, the researchers stress that plastic pollution is not simply a waste problem and climate change is not just a background factor. Together, they form a systems-level challenge that demands coordinated global action across environmental governance, climate mitigation and sustainable materials design.