Plastics are a wide range of synthetic or semisynthetic materials composed primarily of polymers. Their defining characteristic, plasticity, allows them to be molded, extruded, or pressed into a diverse range of solid forms.
plastic, polymeric material that has the capability of being molded or shaped, usually by the application of heat and pressure.
On this page, you can find all of our data, visualizations, and writing on plastic pollution. The first synthetic plastic – Bakelite – was produced in 1907, marking the beginning of the global plastics industry. However, rapid growth in global plastic production didn’t happen until the 1950s.