Organized Crime Groups Exploit Recycled Plastics

While Americans who toss their recycled plastic goods into green or blue bins believe the items are being recycled, they’re too often shipped overseas — sometimes with the help of organized crime — left to litter cities elsewhere,  according to an independent Swiss research group, the Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime.

The group released a report on Monday shedding new light on how waste fuels crime organizations and litters developing countries. 

Virginia Comolli, the report’s main author, says the illicit aspect of the trade is already a significant problem and on the rise, the LA Times details.  “Given the existing trends in terms of our addiction to plastic — and looking at future projections that it’s likely to increase — we are likely to also see an increase in these criminal activities,” Comolli added.

The report found that once the waste is in the hands of a company, they engage in fraud with waste brokers, conceal shipments of banned plastics, and illegally dump plastics to get past inspectors to make a larger profit. These shippers are becoming more sophisticated, the researchers note, saying that by the time an illegal shipment arrives at its final destination, it’s not clear where it came from due to elaborate and illegal shipping routes.