Mikroplaster på strand

Plastics are Ubiquitous in Our Environment

At IVL Swedish Environmental Institute, we address the entire lifecycle of plastics—from production and design to use, reuse, and recycling. Our work is dedicated to minimizing the environmental impact of plastics and promoting their sustainable use.

IVL Swedish Environmental Institute has strong expertise in plastics and can provide support and advice on using plastics sustainably.

Our data collection and analysis process is comprehensive, providing well-founded decision support through surveys, statistics, and a thorough analysis of plastics flows—from production and usage to waste, treatment, and dispersion of microplastics.

We help local governments and companies risk-assess substances in products and waste, which is particularly important in reuse and recycling. We also conduct environmental assessments at the product and system levels.

We conduct assignments and research projects to identify and analyze obstacles and propose and study policy measures for government agencies and businesses that promote the sustainable use of plastics.

A selection of our work in plastics

Vegetable box made from styrofoam, containing broccoli, on a field

Circular industrial plastic

Swedish industry uses large amounts of plastic packaging. Most is incinerated after a single use. The project Closing the loop of industrial plastics is developing solutions to close such circles, which would bring economic and environmental benefits.

Insamling av plastflaskor

Bio-plastics in Europe

Most plastics in the world are produced from fossil oil and a great deal of plastic waste ends up in the environment. In the project Bio-plastics Europe strategies and solutions for bio-based and biodegradable plastics are developed, as an alternative to conventional, fossil-based plastics.

Händer i handskar jobbar med provtagning

Increased recycling from industry and healthcare

By increasing the recycling of plastics, we help achieve the UN's global climate goals. Single-use plastics in healthcare and industry is an area with a lot of growth potential when it comes to recycling.

The latest news in Plastics

Services offered by IVL in the field of plastics

IVL helps you develop solutions that help foster sustainable operations and a sustainable society. Everything we do rests on a scientific foundation, and if you engage us as a consultant, you get all our research as part of the deal.

Research in plastics

Research that fosters sustainable plastics use

Contact IVL's plastics experts

Ivl Sara Anderson

Sara Anderson

Circular economy

Mikael Olshammar IVL personal

Mikael Olshammar

Microplastics

Bild på Alexandra Almasi

Alexandra Maria Almasi

Plastic waste

Porträtt av Emma Strömberg medarbetare på IVL

Emma Strömberg

Polymer materials