There are 500 times
more pieces of micro–plastic
in the sea than there are stars in our galaxy and by 2050 it is estimated there
will be more plastic than fish.
Cheap, capable of
being made into any conceivable shape, strong and durable, plastic is something
of a wonder material. It has proved so useful to humans that since the 1950s we
have produced an estimated 8.3 billion
metric tonnes of the stuff. However, the victim of this success
appears to be much of life on Earth. And
humans, one day, could find themselves among them.
would modern life be like without plastic? According to
The World Economic Forum, plastic
production has exploded over the last half-century, growing from 16.5 million
tons in 1964 to 343 million tons in 2014; it is projected to double by 2036. Even
if you live hundreds of miles from the coast, the plastic you throw away could
make its way into the sea. Once in the ocean, plastic decomposes very slowly,
breaking down in to tiny pieces known as micro plastics that can be incredibly
damaging to sea life. 80% of plastic in our oceans is from land sources, but what does that
really mean? Where is it coming from? Where does all of the plastic go
when we’re done with it?
The concern surrounding plastic waste
is its problematic disposal. Plastics can be recycled, also be burned, which
has potentially detrimental impacts to the environment. Aside from incineration
or recycling, dumping plastic waste in landfills or in nature are the only
remaining disposal options for plastic waste.
that has been created since 2015, only around nine percent has been recycled, 12
percent was incinerated and 79 percent was put in landfills or in nature. If
current trends continue, around 12,000 tons of plastic will be in nature or in
landfills by 2050.
experiment on a global scale” by scientists.
How much plastic is
in the sea?
With more than eight
million tonnes going into the oceans every year, it is estimated there will be
more plastic than fish by 2050 and 99 per cent of all the seabirds on the
planet will have consumed some. It is thought the sea now contains some 51
trillion microplastic particles – 500 times more than stars in our galaxy.
It
is found all over the planet, with 300 billion pieces in the once-pristine Arctic and a
remote island in the Pacific, the uninhabited Henderson Island, one of the
Pitcairns, believed to have the highest concentration of plastic pollution in the world.
Is
it dangerous?
Some
plastic is toxic and it can disrupt hormones crucial for a healthy existence.
Even when it is not dangerous itself or not known to be, plastic acts like a magnet for a range of other poisons and
pollutants we have spilled into the natural world.
sea turtles, plastic bags in the water can look like jellyfish, floating on the
surface plastic can appear to be a tasty snack for a seagull, based on
millennia of experience, and to baby perch it appears more appetising than the plankton they are supposed to
eat.
Unsurprisingly,
gulping down all this indigestible poison instead of food is bad for their
health. So far, it is known that marine litter harms more than 600 species amid
what some regard as the beginning of the sixth mass extinction of life on
Earth.
Why
should we worry about pollution in the sea?
off sea creatures is bad for humans because we consume so much of it ourselves.
Some 92.6 million tonnes were caught worldwide in 2015, according
to the United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organisation.
plastic degrades to pieces small enough to pass through the stomach into the
flesh of fish and other animals, we are already eating some of the plastic we have thrown
into the sea.
of course, just like other animals that plastic is likely to be finding its way
into the tissues of our bodies with potentially harmful consequences.
What’s
being done about it?
world is, finally, starting to wake up to the problem.
February this year, the United Nations announced it had “declared war on ocean plastic”.
countries have now joined the UN’s CleanSeas campaign, including the UK,
Canada, France, Indonesia, Sierra Leone, Brazil, Norway, Italy, Costa Rica,
Kenya and Peru. The US, China, Russia and Japan have not.
The
UK has banned micro-plastics in “rinse-off” cosmetics, like
facial scrubs, but not “leave-on” products like make-up and suntan
cream.
What can we do?
Consumers
can help fix the problem by making an effort to reduce plastic waste.
from a reusable water bottle instead of a disposable one can also be very
helpful.
also avoid to-go containers like cups from coffee shops and styrofoam
containers for leftovers from restaurants.
plastic straws, even in restaurants.
reducing your plastic use as much as possible, recycle everything you can.
you’re passionate about decreasing plastic waste and reducing pollution in the
environment, you can become an advocate in your community.
also speak to lawmakers or local government members about plastic pollution.
Plastic pollution has a big impact on
the environment, but plastic waste isn’t unavoidable.
Any
other problems we should know about?
Plastic
may also be contaminating the air we breathe. Plastic micro-particles
from cosmetics and microfibers from synthetic clothes are washed into the
sewage system. While many pass through treatment plants and end up in the sea,
others particles are caught up in sewage used to fertilise farmers’ fields.
After it dries out, it may get picked up by the wind and blown about. Professor
Frank Kelly, an expert in environmental health from King’s College London, told
a committee of MPs last year: “There’s a real possibility that some of those
micro-particles will be entrained into the air and they will be carried around
and we will end up breathing them.”
How bad is it?
Perhaps
not Earth-shattering, but definitely Earth-trashing. Plastic may end up
being one of the defining characteristics of a new epoch in the planet’s
history. Eventually,
the layer of plastic spread around the world from the 1950s onwards will
form a noticeable line in the sedimentary rocks of the future.
And
that is one reason – along with radioactive fallout from nuclear bomb tests,
pollution, climate change effects such as higher sea levels, and the extinction
of many animal species – that geologists are considering declaring the end of
the Holocene and the beginning of the Anthropocene or the ‘Epoch of the
Humans’.
In
a few decades, a blink of an eye in Earth’s 4.5-billion-year history, plastic
has not only changed the fabric of life but the very rocks.
UN
warns of growing threat of plastic pollution to human health
Plastic
starts to smell like food to fish after it has been in the sea, according to
research that sheds new light on how the artificial, toxic substance is getting
into the food chain.
Concern
is growing that plastic is accumulating in the tissues of marine life as it
gradually breaks down in the sea until it is small enough to pass through the
gut wall into the bloodstream and even muscle tissue.
More
than 50 species of fish are known to eat plastic and 700 marine species are
exposed to it.The
scientists tested the responses of wild-caught fish to odour solutions made
from plastic that had been left for three weeks in the sea compared
to “clean plastic”.
The
biofouled, but not the clean, plastic was found to stimulate a behavioural
response consistent with foraging in captive anchovy schools. This is the first
behavioural evidence that plastic debris may be chemically attractive to marine
consumers.These
chemical cues may lure consumers, such as anchovy, into regions of high plastic
density and activate foraging behaviours, thus making it difficult to ignore or
reject plastic items as potential prey.
Given
plastic’s attractiveness to marine life eaten by humans, there is concern that
it could also start to become a problem for our species. The researchers
recommended further research into the negative effects of plastic in the marine
food chain, such as increased risk of predation.
“Humans
are at the top of these food chains; therefore, results of such future studies
may have important consequences for human health,” they said.
In
addition to attracting smells associated with food, plastic also accumulates
toxic chemicals in the natural environment. Other scientists have concluded
this effect is so pronounced that plastic itself should be treated as a
toxic substance once it gets into the environment.
Concern
over plastic waste has been growing, partly because it can contain hazardous
chemicals but also because it attracts and concentrates other chemicals.
The
same properties that make plastics so versatile in innumerable applications
like durability and resistance to degradation, make these materials difficult or impossible for
nature to assimilate.
Thus,
without a well-designed and tailor-made management strategy for end-of-life
plastics, humans are conducting a singular uncontrolled experiment on a global
scale, in which billions of metric tons of material will accumulate across all
major terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems on the planet.
Plastic
waste is seen as one of the signs that the Earth has entered a new geological
epoch called the Anthropocene after humans as it will eventually show up in the
rocks of the future, creating a dividing line between a ‘natural’ world and one
dominated by our species.
There are three main ways the plastic we use every day
ends up in the oceans.
Throwing
plastic in the bin when it could be recycled
Plastic you put in the bin ends up in
landfill. When rubbish is being transported to landfill, plastic is often blown
away because it’s so lightweight. From there, it can eventually
clutter around drains and enter rivers and the sea this way.
Littering
Litter dropped on the street doesn’t stay
there. Rainwater and wind carries plastic waste into streams and rivers, and
through drains. Drains lead to the ocean!
Careless and improper waste disposal is also
a big contributor – illegal dumping of waste adds greatly
to the plastic surge in our seas.
Products that go down the drain
Many of the products we use daily
are flushed down toilets, including wet wipes, cotton buds and sanitary
products. Micro-fibres are even released into waterways when we wash our
clothes in the washing machine. They are too small to be filtered out
by waste water plants and end up being consumed by small marine species,
eventually even ending up in our food chain.
How does plastic get into the ocean? The bottom line is
us. Whether we mean to litter or not, there’s always a chance the plastic we
throw away could make it into the sea, and from there who knows? Maybe as far
as the Arctic.
Big changes start with small steps and
we all have the power to make a difference. What will you do to start cutting
the plastic in your life?
