<b>PLASTIC WASTE: ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT, INNOVATIVE SOLUTIONS, AND PATHWAYS TO SUSTAINABLE MANAGEMENT</b>

Plastic waste, therefore, has become one of the most significant environmental and health challenges in the contemporary world mainly because it is highly nonbiodegradable and permeates the Earth’s terrestrial, aquatic, and aerial environments. Therefore, the present work aims to assess the environmental and ecological consequences of plastic pollution accentuating on deterioration of ecosystems, alteration in physical and chemical attributes of the soil, pollution of water sources, and negative effects on biological diversification and human well-being. The various technological measures like adsorption, photocatalytic degradation, coagulation, and microbial decomposition as innovative treatment processes for degrading plastics and their associated impacts are analyzed precisely. Conventional approaches such as recycling, disposal through burning, and disposal through landfilling are presented and compared to solutions that seek to embrace the circular economy model to enhance proper waste management. Subsequently, the study establishes the opportunity to integrate novel approaches in technology with structures that are already in place to solve the comprehensive issues caused by plastic pollution. This paper underscores the existing systematic focus on the green approach towards the integration of bio-friendly methods to reduce plastic waste and enhance natural resources and health safety to form a roadmap to sustainable living.