(FILES) In this file photo taken on May 18, 2018 shows a stuffed toy of the Sesame Street character "Elmo" surrounded by plastic waste on a beach on the Freedom island critical habitat and ecotourism area near Manila. - There are more than eight billion tons of plastic littering the planet -- the lion's share of which is not recyclable -- and plastic production is expected to double in the next two decades according to a study in the journal PLOS ONE. The French government wants to introduce from next year -2019- a bonus-malus system to spread the plastic recycling among consumers, in the midst of a global regulation of the sector. (Photo by NOEL CELIS / AFP)