Pieter Busscher (Robeco) | The findings were part of a series of studies from the World Bank investigating the economic and environmental impact of applying circular economy principles within industries. The study analyzed the plastic supply chains of Malaysia, the Philippines and Thailand, and found that 75% of plastic that could have been recycled had been discarded. This means that almost 5 million of the 6.5 million metric tons of plastic produced is either hauled to trash heaps, dumped in oceans, burned in incinerators or simply scrapped as litter in the open environment.