Plastic pollution
what's the problem
Plastic is found almost everywhere on Earth whether you can see it or not. It is found in cities, oceans, nature, and many other places. A lot of the plastic found in oceans are small pieces of plastic called microplastics which is what dissolves out of single use plastics like plastic bottles, or any other plastic items. This makes it difficult for people to find the microplastics and clear them out of the water. Sea animals can get tangled in them, and they mistake them for food and eat them. About 50% of all plastics produced are single use plastics. In this part of the website, you will learn about plastic pollution, and how it harms the Earth.
Microplastics
Microplastics, as stated in their name are tiny plastic pieces. They are described as plastics smaller than five millimeters (0.2 inches) in diameter. There are two different groups of microplastics: primary and secondary.
Primary microplastics are mainly designed for commercial use, like makeup products, and microfibers that shed off of our clothes and other fabrics, like fishing nets.
Secondary microplastics are the result of the breakdown of bigger plastic items, like a water bottle. Plastic breakdown is caused by exposure to the sun, and when the ocean tosses it around.
The problem with microplastics is that they do not break down into harmless molecules. Its not only microplastics,all types of plastics don’t go away. Plastics can take or thousands of years to dissolve. On beaches, microplastics are seen as tiny colorful plastic pieces in the sand. In the ocean, microplastics are usually eaten by sea creatures.
The problem with microplastics is that they do not break down into harmless molecules. Its not only microplastics,all types of plastics don’t go away. Plastics can take or thousands of years to dissolve. On beaches, microplastics are seen as tiny colorful plastic pieces in the sand. In the ocean, microplastics are usually eaten by sea creatures.
Microplastics have been found in sea creatures the size of plankton to the size of a whale, in seafood at the grocery store, and sometimes, they’re even in the water we drink!Many water treatment facilities can’t remove all microplastics. out of the ocean water. Microplastics in the ocean can attract other chemicals that are harmful, and then they are eaten by sea animals like fish, and then we eat them.
Scientists still aren’t sure if consumption of microplastics is harmful to human health or animal health, and if it is, what may harm them. Many countries are taking their actions to try to reduce microplastics in the environment. In 2017, a United Nations resolution talked about microplastics and the need for rules to save our oceans, marine wildlife, and to make sure we are healthy, Incase consumption of microplastics is harmful to us.
How does plastic pollution affect the environment, animals, and us humans?
In the ocean, plastic pollution can kill marine life through getting tangled in things such as fishing gear, but it can also kill animals through consuming plastic, often mistaking it for food. Studies have shown that all different species, including zooplankton, whales, dolphins, porpoises, most seabirds, and marine turtles easily ingest plastic.
Plastic is the perfect material for many things. It can be strong enough to build a spaceship and replace bones, or it can be thin and flexible enough to make shopping bags that weigh very little but carry a lot. Plastic is different than other materials, because it can last for many centuries, and it doesn’t rot or rust. Humans manufacture plastic mainly because it's cheap and durable. The characteristics of plastic that make it useful to humans, harm the life in the oceans, where almost 10% of our disposed trash ends up. Small pieces of plastic, like microplastics are most of plastics in the ocean, but big pieces of plastic are certainly not good news either for animals in the ocean like albatross, sea turtles and whales because they can get tangled in the debris or ingest the pieces. Our shopping bags and plastic water bottles get weakened by the sunlight and broken apart by the wind and the water into small pieces of plastic called microplastics. Plastic is so durable that the microorganisms that decompose pieces of wood and seaweed down into more simple and organic compounds can’t digest plastic very easily. So, when the plastic bits get broken into even smaller pieces, it spreads around the ocean over time, and it will never go away, which is why microplastics are found almost everywhere in the oceans, in the Arctic, in the Antarctic, on the surface of the water, and on the ocean floor. It’s very easy to see the impacts of large pieces of plastic, but microplastics are much more difficult to trace. Small creatures can multiply and grow on, or they can choke small creatures that think the microplastics are food. They can also bring in toxic chemicals, and then other animals eat them. The microplastics become introduced into the food chain if a creature eats the plastic.
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Marine Debris
Marine debris is sourced from different places and gets into the ocean in many ways. Purposely littering and dumping trash are two big reasons why marine debris exists. Trash can go straight into the ocean, like when people go to the beach and don’t leave their trash behind. Marine debris can also be made in a city hundreds of miles from the ocean. When somebody litters on the streets or in the parking lots, that trash gets moved by the rainwater, and goes into storm drains. The storm drains empty out into bodies of water, like rivers or streams of water. Sometimes, trash can get blown away by the wind, also into bodies of water. Those rivers and streams that trash piles up in eventually find their way into the ocean, along with the trash. Improper/careless waste disposal is also a big cause of marine debris. This is when, for example, somebody’s trash can is overflowing with trash, but they continue to fill it up, or when someone throws away plastic, when it should go in the recycling bin instead. A lot of people around the world don’t have access to a proper waste disposal, or a recycling system. Around the world, many people don't have access to proper waste disposal or recycling, but the trash must go somewhere. Marine debris doesn’t only come from land, it also is caused by water activities, like when people throw trash overboard, which is against the law. Sometimes people’s things can get blown off or fall from their boats on accident. Sometimes, due to storms or fast passing boats, fishers can lose their fishing gear, and it goes into the water. These are all ways that water activities can create marine debris. Once the debris is in the ocean, it is hard to trace the exact source, and where it came from. The point is, there is marine debris because of us. Humans are the source, and every person has the power and responsibility to prevent marine debris.
Plastic in daily life
Some facial scrubs and toothpaste get their rubbing skills from small pieces of plastics. Some companies put polyethylene spheres in some care products. Once you use these products to scrub your face or brush your teeth, they go straight through the drain. Wastewater treatment plants aren’t made to filter tiny polyethylene balls. (smaller than a millimeter in diameter) These small plastics pieces get out into rivers and lakes. A dental hygienist named Trish Walravenan says that she has seen microbeads that were stuck in the gums of her patients. Some companies are starting to do something about microplastics in their products. One company, Procter and Gamble (which makes Crest toothpaste) made a vow to completely remove microbeads from their products by March of 2016. Another example is the state of Illinois, which outlawed the small microplastics and banned it completely by 2019. If you don’t like the idea of plastic in your gums, or in your drains, you can look in the ingredients list on most products and look for “polyethylene”.