Every year over 22 million pounds of plastic are dumped into the Great Lakes, about half of that (about the size of 100 olympic swimming pools) into Lake Michigan. About 5 years ago, I lived only a block away from Lake Michigan. I loved riding my bike down there and going swimming almost every summer day. But now, visiting the lake again, all I can see is trash. Everywhere. It kind of ruins the memory of it. I think we need to start caring for Lake Michigan more, because it's filled with plastic, chemicals, and an excess amount of nutrients all of which cause harm to the lake.

First off, Lake Michigan and its beaches are littered with plastic and microplastic. According to the Alliance for the Great Lakes, microscopic pieces of plastic have been found in our own drinking water and fish. We don’t really know the health effects yet, but there is a possibility they could be harmful. According to the International Union for Conservation of Nature, larger pieces of plastic can also make a big impact on our marine animals. Animals like birds, fish, and turtles can mistake plastic as their own prey. They could die of starvation due to all the plastic in their stomachs. Plastic can also cause cuts, infections, difficulty swimming, and internal harm to wildlife. According to Environmental Science and Engineering Magazine, plastic itself enters the Great Lakes mainly through landfills and littering. Microplastics just come from tiny, broken down bits of the original plastic. Plastics like these can never actually biodegrade, only break down into smaller pieces that will continue to hurt our planet.

Next, many chemicals fill the lake, and are exposed to humans as well as animals. According to The World Counts, chemicals in pesticides, fertilizer, and many more different chemicals can be found in our lakes and oceans. These can contaminate our drinking water and food. They can also go into our atmosphere, hurting our environment even more. According to National Public Radio, there are PFAS in the lake water, and pretty much everywhere else. These are chemicals found in everyday things like wrappers and nonstick cookware. When it travels up the food chain, many people and animals could ingest them. They are found all over, including in humans, though we don’t know the possible health effects yet. According to Esri, chemical pollutants can come from anywhere, but mostly from industrial sites and farmland. These enter through runoff, and are very dangerous once they're in the lake.

Lastly, there is a type of pollution called nutrient pollution. According to Esri, algal blooms are increased by pollutants like nitrogen. This can make water treatment more expensive, restrict outdoor activities, and can be harmful to aquatic life and humans. According to the National Ocean Service, nutrients pollution can also cause eutrophication. This can make dead zones and kill fish. According to the US Geological Survey, these nutrients mostly come from us humans. Things like fertilizers, wastewater, animal waste, and car exhaust are all causes.

I think it is very important to start taking care of Lake Michigan. We need to start caring because the pollution will just get worse and worse, which can harm us humans and wildlife. Please do your part in keeping the beaches clean by doing things as simple as picking up garbage you see and throwing it away. Take further action by calling on local governments to make regulations stricter.

Sources:

Chemical Pollution Definition. (2020). Retrieved November 17, 2020, from https://www.theworldcounts.com/stories/What_is_Chemical_Pollution

Davey, P. (2019, March 14). Understanding plastic pollution in the Great Lakes. Retrieved November 17, 2020, from https://esemag.com/water/understanding-plastic-pollution-in-the-great-lakes/

Great Lakes Plastic Pollution. (2020, November 11). Retrieved November 17, 2020, from https://greatlakes.org/great-lakes-plastic-pollution-fighting-for-plastic-free-water/

Hersher, R. (2019, April 22). Scientists Dig Into Hard Questions About The Fluorinated Pollutants Known As PFAS. Retrieved November 17, 2020, from https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2019/04/22/708863848/scientists-dig-into-hard-questions-about-the-fluorinated-pollutants-known-as-pfa

Marine plastics. (2018, December 05). Retrieved November 17, 2020, from https://www.iucn.org/resources/issues-briefs/marine-plastics

Nutrients and Eutrophication. (n.d.). Retrieved November 17, 2020, from https://www.usgs.gov/mission-areas/water-resources/science/nutrients-and-eutrophication?qt-science_center_objects=0

Pollution In The Great Lakes. (n.d.). Retrieved November 17, 2020, from https://www.arcgis.com/apps/Cascade/index.html?appid=238bf299a1314dfba9e41a4eee352ee5

US Department of Commerce, N. (2019, April 02). What is eutrophication? Retrieved November 17, 2020, from https://oceanservice.noaa.gov/facts/eutrophication.html