But this strong, durable, light, waterproof, airtight and electrically insulating material has created something of a materials revolution, with the volume in the US municipal waste stream increasing sixty-fold over the last 40 years.

In 2000, plastics accounted for nearly 11% of the country's municipal waste. In comparison to metal, glass and paper, the volume of plastic generated is increasing faster, but the 5% recycling rate is far lower.

The biggest hazard in plastics disposal is open burning, which releases a range of health-damaging pollutants into the atmosphere.

The most feared of these are dioxins, which are released during combustion processes – particularly when polyvinylchloride, or PVC, is burnt.

Hi-tech incinerators can now remove most dioxins from incinerator emissions. But there are still risks from landfill fires, and Greenpeace says that industrialised countries have exported PVC for “recycling” to developing countries where, if there are incinerators at all, standards are not as high.

There is also concern about the additives, particularly softeners and flame retardants, used in PVC and other plastics.

For most plastics, however, the main problem is the space they take up in landfills. Some plastics eventually break up into small, but chemically unchanged, fragments if exposed to light - but few rays penetrate the depths of a typical landfill.

Even in normal conditions, this process can take 10-20 years for a plastic carrier bag.

“Bio-degradable” plastics, containing additives such as corn starch, have been developed in recent years. But, according to Friends of the Earth, the products created sometimes also contain non-biodegradable and toxic substances.

Plastic comes in six types, which must be sorted for it to be recycled. It is made into products such as fleece jackets, car bumpers and garden furniture – although this is not an easy process to do cost-effectively.

Plastics are made from oil, and mixed plastic waste has an energy value similar to that of coal. So, when compared with the complex recycling process, some say hi-tech incineration is a better solution to the plastic waste problem.