“Burning [plastics] in kilns not designed to filter out dangerous substances releases “a whole new cocktail of contaminants”, said Lee Bell, a policy advisor at the International Pollutants Elimination Network.

IPEN senior advisor Mariann Lloyd-Smith said Catherine's levels were "quite high compared to other impacted communities and certainly we saw impacts in those communities, according to the ANU study".

Dr. Kefela advocates for centering these communities in policy-making and solution development, highlighting the importance of environmental justice in addressing plastic pollution.