The 1950s saw the emergence of single-use plastic products as a revolutionary means of packaging that was both light and relatively non-costly. Today, however, scientists argue that this same convenient packaging has turned into a global environmental and health hazard now that plastic has invaded the seas and oceans, breaking down into tiny particles that are scientifically known as microplastics.
These particles are invisible and are a source of water and air pollution that penetrates the bodies of living organisms and ultimately comes to rest in our own bodies via food.
Microplastics are small plastic particles less than five mm in size. Some of them are only one micrometre in diameter and are called nanoplastics. They are classified into two main types. The first type is deliberately added to some products including cosmetics, detergents, fertilisers as raw plastic granules that are used in pre-manufacturing stages. These granules are then lost during manufacturing or transportation, only to find their way into the environment. The second type is a byproduct of the decomposition of larger plastic products by sunlight, corrosion, or during the washing of synthetic fibres.
A recent report by the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) titled “Drowning in Plastics: Marine Litter and Plastic Waste” shows how microplastics are no longer just an environmental problem but are also a direct menace infiltrating our bodies through food and air.
“Global plastic production has risen exponentially in the last decades,” the report warned. “It now amounts to some 400 million tons per year.”
Yet, according to the report, “only an estimated 12 per cent of the plastics produced have been incinerated and only an estimated nine per cent have been recycled.” The rest “has either been disposed of in landfills or released into the environment, including the oceans.”
“Without meaningful action, flows of plastic waste into aquatic ecosystems are expected to nearly triple from around 11 million tons in 2016 to around 29 million tons in 2040.”
The penetration of plastic into our lives occurs through the invisible infiltration of these small particles into the marine environment and aquatic systems through multiple paths such as sewage, waste systems, or sometimes even through fishing gear and synthetic fibres, according to the report.
The proper disposal of plastic particles is almost impossible once they infiltrate the environment, but they can be reduced through strict regulations at manufacturing sites and via clean-up campaigns. The EU’s ban on microplastic additives is also expected to limit the problem by about 400,000 tons over the next 20 years.
In Egypt, the plastic industry has been one of the most prosperous over recent decades. It employs more than 550,000 workers, which makes it one of the country’s largest industries in terms of workforce size. The industry contributes about 12 per cent to Egypt’s GDP, and the country consumed five million tons of plastic products during 2022-2023, with total annual demand increasing by 7.5 per cent, according to a 2024 report by the cabinet’s Information and Decision Support Centre titled “Plastic Pollution and the Promotion of Sustainable Alternatives.”
Another report by the UN Industrial Development Organisation (UNIDO) titled “The Plastic Value Chain in Egypt” similarly shows that single-use plastics account for about 36 per cent of the market in Egypt.
“The plastic manufacturing sector, which focuses on packaging and the pipe industry, accounts for about half of plastic consumption in Egypt,” the report says. “The packaging sector accounts for 36 per cent of the market, followed by the pipe industry for construction and building (24 per cent), then for agricultural purposes (14 per cent), followed by the rest of the plastic industry.”
In the light of the high local demand for plastic products and their associated environmental challenges, Egypt has begun to take steps towards promoting a circular economy and encouraging investment in recycling. The volume of recycled plastic production reached 1.5 million tons in 2022-2023, and the value of investments in recycling plastic waste ranged between LE1 and LE2 billion in the same year, employing some 1,800 workers.
The UNIDO report says that plastic waste has become hazardous to the marine environment in Egypt. According to statistics from the Ministry of Environment, the volume of plastic waste in Egypt reached 2.5 million tons during 2022-23, while the total annual amount of waste generated ranged between 26 and 28 million tons.
Marine plastic waste is estimated to constitute 80 to 85 per cent of the total waste, which raises concerns about the marine environment.
MICROPLASTICS IN SEAFOOD: Fishermen off the coast of Alexandria, especially those at the Eastern Port and Abu Qir, can often now hardly recognise the fish that are caught in their nets, since they are loaded with unseen microplastic particles that lurk inside their intestines.
A 2022 study conducted by the National Institute of Oceanography and Fisheries in Alexandria called “Commercial Fish Contamination with Microplastics in Alexandria” said that 92 per cent of all fish species caught off the city were contaminated with microplastics. The study was based on an analysis of 114 fish species. All types were found to contain microplastics in their intestines.
Soha Shabaka, one of the research participants, told Al-Ahram Weekly that “fine filaments and shiny pieces were the most common form of these particles.”
The Sparus aurata fish, popularly known as seabream, was found to have the highest level of plastic. Polymers were the most dominant form of plastic found in the fish, attributed to multiple land and marine sources. Glossy fragments were found in fish caught in the Abu Qir Bay area, where domestic, agricultural, and industrial waste flows into the sea. Samples taken from the Eastern Port revealed plastic threads and larger coloured fragments, probably the result of fishing activities and cruises in the area.
The report concluded that the Mediterranean Sea represents a global “hotspot” for plastic pollution due to its nature as a semi-enclosed basin surrounded by areas of high population and encroached upon by intense industrial activities. Alexandria was classified as among the most prominent cities contributing to the leakage of plastic waste into the Eastern Mediterranean and exposing marine life to this kind of silent pollution.
Microplastics have also found their way into marine oysters, another indicator of how marine life and the ecosystem have been harmed by plastic waste.
A recent study conducted by the National Institute of Oceanography and Fisheries in Alexandria called “Assessment of Levels of Persistent and Emerging Pollutants in Marine Mollusks in the Gulf of Suez” said that microplastics were detected in 72 per cent of marine samples collected in the region.
The specimens included common types of mollusks such as Paphia textile and Paratapes undulatus collected from the Gulf of the Suez Canal, as well as Tridacna maxima, a species of clam that is collected for human consumption but is considered a luxury product due to its high price.
SEEKING SOLUTIONS: Research is the first step towards finding solutions to the invisible infiltration of microplastics into marine life. Civil society is also playing a role in monitoring the sources of this invisible pollution, raising awareness to improve consumer behaviour and outlining plans to curb it.
Abdel-Qader Al-Khaligi, co-founder of Banlastik (Ban Single-Use Plastic) Egypt, a startup founded in 2018 to combat plastic pollution, said that “uncontrolled tourism is one of the main causes of worsening plastic pollution.”
“Public beaches are prone to the accumulation of plastic waste,” he said, adding that “most of this waste comes from food or beverage packaging because bags and bottles are usually lightweight and can be easily carried away by the wind.”
The nature of the waste varies, however, and fishing activities can also produce waste ranging from worn nets to clothes belongings to fishermen and vacationers.
Waste on beaches located on the outskirts of Alexandria, like Agami, Abu Talat, Sidi Krir, and Nelson Island, may be more complicated. “Waste coming from nearby tourist villages or even from other Mediterranean countries such as Italy, Greece, and Turkey has been found,” Al-Khaligi said.
“The majority of this waste is packaging from food and dairy products, and it is not possible to say for sure whether it comes from ships or from other beaches.”
There is no quick solution to the issue of plastic waste. Instead, solutions should address the source of the problem by dealing with the packaging companies that are one prime source of the waste, he added.
“The companies should be invited to discuss the issue with government agencies and civil society,” he said. “But poor coordination among the different bodies is still an obstacle to solving the problem and finding effective solutions to it. If this lack of coordination persists, the problem will remain for decades to come.”
However, he praised a recent decision by the Ministry of the Environment to start legalising the distribution of plastic bags, allowing an annual limit of 50 per individual per year. The decision will be applied this year, and it is considered to be an important step towards curbing plastic pollution by reusing and recycling plastic waste and dispensing with single-use plastic products.
In an attempt to further curb plastic pollution, the government has also introduced laws that target producers and consumers alike.
Article 17 of Waste Management Law 202/2020 imposes a mechanism that holds the manufacturers and importers of plastic responsible for their products after their sale and consumption. Ministerial resolution 662/2025 applies this legislation to plastic shopping bags in particular, obliging companies to pay LE37.5 per kg of locally sold bags. The funds raised are directed to the Waste Management Regulatory Authority to finance the safe disposal of the bags.
The resolution also includes comprehensive control measures that start with registering companies in the National Waste Management System and submitting detailed quarterly reports on production and sales quantities in an attempt to achieve full transparency regarding the market circulation of plastic bags.
The move came on the heels of other similar steps like that taken in 2019 by the Red Sea governor to ban the use of single-use plastic in the Governorate and the National Strategy to Reduce Plastic Bags approved by the cabinet in August 2022.
The strategy, implemented until 2030, aims to reduce the number of bags consumed per capita to 50 per year, instead of the current average of 565 in Greater Cairo in 2023, according to official data. The implementation includes raising community awareness, banning free distribution, and setting a minimum thickness for bags.
Legislation aside, there are also other solutions that can encourage investment in recycling to curb plastic waste.
Manal Eloffy, rapporteur of the Water Committee at the General Syndicate of Engineers, told the Weekly that “microplastic and nanoplastic materials can be disposed of in wastewater treatment plants, whether sanitary or industrial. The plants can prevent the penetration of microplastics and nanoplastics into the marine environment and reused water, especially if the treated water is to be used in irrigation, so that microplastic particles do not clog agricultural soil or damage human, plant, and animal health.”
“There are several solutions that can be carried out through water treatment plants, which vary according to design as well as economic and environmental considerations. Each method has its own cost and application challenges.”
Meanwhile, there are also solutions from nature-based nutrition aiming to curb the threat of microplastics to fish. A recent Egyptian scientific study on the effect of microplastics on the fertility of male Nile tilapia fish, a species widely used in fish farming in Egypt, found that feeding the fish on an alga called Amphora coffeaeformis, together with the use of antioxidants to raise their immunity, were effective means of countering the hazardous effect of microplastics on the fish reproductive system.
The study, published in the journal Environmental Science and Pollution Research in 2021, was conducted by a team from the National Institute of Oceanography and Fisheries and Asyut University. Rania Fahmi, a research professor at the Fish Reproduction and Hatchery Laboratory and one of the participants in the study, told the Weekly that “fish farm water can come from water sources loaded with microplastics.”
The study shows that the exposure of tilapia to microplastics in concentrations that mimic the natural environment led to an imbalance in male hormones and serious tissue changes, including the appearance of female cells inside the testicles, a condition that indicates a hormonal disorder that may hinder reproduction, according to Fahmi.
“Pre-feeding on naturally available algae and the use of antioxidants is one of the solutions that contribute to reducing these effects, which opens the way for its use as a natural dietary supplement that enhances the immunity of fish in fish farms against pollution,” Fahmi said.
The wider production of bioplastics is another solution to the problem of microplastic waste. Many scientific research experiments aim to produce environmentally friendly bioplastics instead of regular plastic, using organic polymers extracted from plants, algae, or agricultural waste to do so.
Adel Fahmi, a professor of algaeology (phycology) at Ain Shams University in Cairo, explained that the production of bioplastics is growing into “a trend aiming at reducing the consumption of traditional plastic, because the manufacture of plastic bags cannot be stopped globally.”
However, he said that while bioplastic experiments have had some limited success in producing biodegradable bags and tableware, the application of this technology at the industrial level still faces challenges.
One of the main ones is that “investors will need to establish specialised infrastructure such as bioreactors to produce the necessary biomass of algae,” he said.
“This new technology will need concerted efforts between scientists and chemists, in addition to environmentally conscious communities that support its spread since environment-friendly plastic is likely to be far more expensive than its traditional counterpart.” Fahmi concluded.
* A version of this article appears in print in the 10 July, 2025 edition of Al-Ahram Weekly
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