Currently, 2.6 million metric tons of single use personal protective equipment or PPE are sent to landfills in the U.S. Furthermore approximately 300 billion single-use gloves are used and landfilled each year. In Sweden,1500 to 5000 metric tons of PPE plastic waste is generated each year, with single-use gloves making up a shocking 44% of that PPE waste. The environmental impact from non-biodegradable and non-recyclable PPE is not only seen in the U.S. and Sweden. It is felt worldwide.

The world health organization stated that due to COVID-19, global manufacturing and production of PPE has increased by 40% and is still on the rise. Unfortunately, the increase in manufacturing has not satisfied the increase in demand, as the demand for single use-gloves has increased 20x the normal level over the last couple of months. This has created a PPE shortage, which has led to the prioritizing the demand from healthcare facilities. Sadly, this leaves many workers in non-healthcare affiliated facilities, such as Waste Management unprotected.