the plastic pandemic: the environmental damage of single-use masks

the clock is ticking. there are about  4,400 days left  until landfills in ontario are full. yet, while many industries face increasing pressure to decrease their environmental impacts, the medical sector quietly marches on in the wrong direction.

most covid-19 restrictions in canada,  including mask mandates, have been lifted . however, other areas of the world with lower vaccination rates are  still struggling . and each new wave – covid is  surging again  in the u.k. and europe – or variant that emerges reinforces that the pandemic is truly a global issue, and thus a global responsibility. so long as mask use remains necessary for some, the environmental consequences will be felt by all.

the true amount of waste produced because of the pandemic is difficult to quantify. however,  a research article  published in the proceedings of the national academy of sciences in the u.s. estimates that the amount of pandemic-associated plastic waste worldwide exceeds 8 million tons, with more than 25,000 tons entering the oceans.

during this high-profile campaign to convince people to wear a mask, seemingly little thought has been given to what happens when people take them off. at the height of the pandemic, an estimated  129 billion face masks  were used every month. one hospital in sudbury  reported using 265,000 masks  in a month compared to 40,000 per month pre-pandemic.

though there are no universal rules for what disposable masks can be made from, many are made of plastic. as with any other single-use plastic, these items inevitably cause environmental damage. when exposed to the sun’s ultraviolet rays, a single discarded mask can release more than  1.5 million microplastic particles  into the water and a further 16 million particles if weathered in sand.

discarded masks have become a common sight on sidewalks and parking lots – the new cigarette butts – and serve as  breeding grounds for bacteria, fungi and even viruses  that may spread disease in the ecosystems where they are discarded – an ironic end for something created for our protection. some countries incinerate face masks as medical waste, releasing carbon into the atmosphere. we are lucky if the masks even make it to a landfill.

the  public health agency of canada  does comment on the environmental impact of single-use masks, encouraging canadians to reuse masks when appropriate and to use mask recycling programs when possible. however, the recycling programs are not commonly available. biodegradable masks have been developed but are far from commonplace and do not address carbon dioxide emissions created by mask production.

to weigh the health of humans against that of the planet itself is an impossible task. however, as stated in  increased plastic pollution due to covid-19 pandemic: challenges and recommendations , we must acknowledge that human health depends on the health of the environment. we cannot continue to behave as though environmental harm caused by the medical sector is a necessary evil. our battle with the transmissible omicron variant was a painful reminder of our failure to develop masks that are both effective and environmentally safe – a mistake we cannot afford to repeat.