It is estimated that tens of thousands of chemicals are currently in use across key social and economic sectors, including electronics, plastics, agriculture, textiles, tourism, industrial processes, construction, and gold mining. When improperly managed or unsafely disposed of, these chemicals can cause serious harm to both human health and the environment.

These risks are compounded by inadequate waste systems: more than two billion people lack basic waste collection and at least three billion lack access to safe recovery or disposal, leading to widespread dumping and open burning.

Global waste generation is rising rapidly and is projected to reach 3.4 billion tonnes per year by 2050. In many developing regions, most municipal waste is still openly dumped, and recycling rates remain very low. Hazardous constituents — including persistent organic pollutants, mercury, and other toxic chemicals — leak from mismanaged waste streams into the environment and food chain. Emissions from dumpsites and open burning are also a significant source of climate pollutants, with an estimated 1.6 billion tonnes CO₂-equivalent released in 2016 alone.

The drivers are structural: linear patterns of production and consumption; gaps in regulation and enforcement; under-resourced infrastructure; limited financing and incentives for safer and more circular alternatives; and insufficient information and technical capacity to apply best practices.

A zero-waste approach addresses these issues at their source. It seeks to prevent hazardous substances from entering products and supply chains; design materials for safe reuse and recycling; keep resources in circulation at their highest value; and ensure that residual waste and hazardous chemicals are treated, recovered or disposed of using best available techniques and environmental practices. In mature systems, more than 99 percent of waste can be diverted from uncontrolled release through reuse, recycling, conversion to energy or bio-products, or controlled landfilling, with less than one percent requiring final disposal.

The transition to this model needs to be tailored to each country’s context. It requires coherent policy frameworks, long-term investment, public-private collaboration, and shifts in market incentives and consumer behaviour. Done well, it reduces toxic exposure, lowers greenhouse-gas emissions, safeguards ecosystems, supports resource security and competitiveness, and contributes directly to health, climate and development objectives.