PCX offers a leading solution to the plastic waste crisis

PCX Markets, which helps fund plastic pollution cleanup and waste management infrastructure worldwide, announced that it has financed the diversion of 100 million kilograms of mixed plastic waste from nature to date. That is equivalent to 6.6 billion 15-gram plastic bottles, and enough to circle the Earth 25 times.

This marks a 34-percent rise in total impact delivered since the start of the year, thanks to growing demand from brands that want to support downstream cleanup efforts and help fund infrastructure development to complement upstream reduction strategies.

With about 9 billion metric tons of plastic produced since the 1950s we are in the midst of a plastic waste crisis which is inextricably linked to the climate crisis.

One cannot be solved without addressing the other. A problem of this magnitude requires a multi-pronged solution comprised of upstream reduction, innovation, and market-based mechanisms like credits that encourage the private sector to make investments into waste management infrastructure.

PCX Markets, a fully transparent plastic credit marketplace for audited, traceable plastic waste recovery and responsible processing, activates an ecosystem of partners who collect, transport and responsibly process plastic waste, while supporting the communities most impacted with programs that improve livelihoods and scale social impact.

“The plastic crisis is so vast that we need all solutions working in parallel—upstream reduction, a functional circular economy, scaled next-gen alternatives, and ready-made, accessible solutions to legacy plastic waste like plastic credits. When tackling a challenge of this size, we should be thinking in terms of ‘and’ rather than ‘or’ and considering the role all types of funding solutions can play,” PCX Markets CEO Sebastian DiGrande said.

“We are on the cusp of historic change. The work of the United Nations on a global treaty to end plastic pollution has created a shared awareness across the public and private sector that we have to move quickly to tackle this crisis,” said Nanette Medved-Po, founder of PCX Markets and PCX Solutions.