Plastic Is Our New Ocean
Siri Sreenivasulu 30/9/2021
In 1907, proudly stood a Belgian-American chemist named Leo Baekeland in his laboratory within Yonkers, New York. He had recently founded Bakelite, the first real synthetic mass-produced plastic. But, Baekeland had no clue that his invention was going to slowly kill our beloved Earth.
Leo Bakland in his laboratory experimenting with chemical compounds in Yonkers, New York
Did you know that 71% of our Earth is made up of pure ocean and plastic covers 40%? That’s an overwhelming amount considering the scale of our planet! Daily, 8 million pieces of plastic are produced, used, and are being sent into our vast oceans - although the rate is linearly increasing. Due to 50% of manufactured plastics being single-use (plastic straws, plastic bags, water bottles, etc), meaning after one time use, it’s being discarded and sent right to landfills or into the oceans. Adding up the total amount of plastic pieces lingering in our ocean with 5.25 trillion macro/microplastics. At this rate, by 2040 there will have been enough plastic in the ocean to cover every yard of coastline in the world with 110 pounds of plastic. Keeping in mind that all this plastic never decomposes, it stays on this Earth in one form or another, containing and scattering unwanted chemicals.
MICROPLASTICS
Macro plastics are classified as large bits of plastic, such as containers, bottles, and bags. However, the breaking down of these plastics into microscopic pieces is the real issue, usually, they are broken down due to environmental factors: radiation from the sun and waves of the ocean. Microplastics are determined as bits less than five millimeters or less than the diameter of a pearl used in jewelry making. Additionally, there are two types of microplastics: primary and secondary. Primary microplastics are designed for commercial use as in cosmetics, clothes, and other textiles (ex. like fishing nets shed microfibers). Moving along, secondary microplastics are particles that result in the breaking down of natural elements. Straws are the central source of secondary plastics. The result of this causes a major problem as microplastics are detected inside bellies of marine organisms, binding other harmful chemicals before being ingested, in commercial seafood, and alarmingly in our drinking water. But what makes it worse is that water treatment facilities cannot remove all traces of microplastics! Moving on, Lynch, the leading center for Marine Debris Research at Hawaii Pacific University in Honolulu, dissects turtle corpses and recently found in the guts, microplastics, the chemicals being absorbed in their tissues. Last year, Lynch and their crew spectated nine hawksbill turtle hatchlings, all under three weeks old. One hatchling, the length of nine centimeters, was found to have 42 pieces of plastic - mostly microplastics, in its gastrointestinal tract.
MARINE LIFE
Every year, 100,000 marine mammals, and 1,000,000 seabirds face death due to plastic. And there are different ways plastic can kill or injure animals. Have you ever heard of ghost gear? Well, they are abandoned fishing nets and swimming gear originating from sunken ships. All types of marine life get entangled, unable to get food which can cause larger problems like infections, resulting in deaths. Consumption of plastic is also another big factor as microplastics and microfibres can be viewed as food to marine life. Turtles, fish, and whales are the main victims of consuming plastic as they are similar in color/shape to their prey. Also, these floating plastics accumulate bacteria and algae on the surface giving it an odor, proving an appetizing effect. After consumption, if the plastic is big enough it can cause blockages to their lungs and intestines. Despite the fact, plastic lasts forever. When consumed it gives the illusion of fullness to the marine animal, leading to starvation. Furthermore, microplastics look similar to plankton, a common food item for those at the base of the food chain. Meaning plastics can make their way to being a part of the ecosystem. Hence, these plastics slowly absorb pollutants in the ocean while they themselves contain unwanted chemicals. “Researchers have done the most work on microplastic risks to marine organisms. Zooplankton, for instance, among the smallest marine organisms, grow more slowly and reproduce less successfully in the presence of microplastics,” says Penelope Lindeque, a marine biologist at the Plymouth Marine Laboratory, located in the UK: the animals’ eggs are smaller and less likely to hatch. Preliminary research proves when animals ingest toxic-infused microplastics their organs often get damaged, making them vulnerable to disease and decreasing reproduction. Fish in the North Pacific ingest 12,000 - 24,000 tons of plastic each year causing intestinal injury and death. The larger the fish, the smaller fish it will ingest, thus ingesting whatever microbial plastic bits along with it, making its way onto our dinner plates. A study even found that ¼ of fish at markets in California contained plastic in their guts, mostly in the form of plastic microfibers!
SOLUTIONS
You would think by now plastic in the ocean is decreasing on account of awareness and action yet out of all the plastic waste ever created, only 9% has been recycled! Why? Because people aren’t taking this worldwide problem seriously, it’s there whether we like it or not. Even commitments by governments/industries made in mid-2019 would produce only a 7% reduction in plastic flow by 2040. Instead of reposting factual information on social media think if you are taking action. If you aren’t, start now. Here are 6 things you can do individually, to reduce your plastic waste.
1) Reduce the use of single-use plastic as they are the main culprit for the advancing numbers of plastic in the ocean. As an alternative to single-use plastic, value biodegradable items as they are environmentally safe and decompose over time. It’s even better if you purchase reusable biodegradable items, this way we are limiting the amount of plastic usage.
2) Volunteer near your local group clean-ups of rivers and beaches. Don't know where to find one? Click me to find a cleanup near you! Or just head down to the beach with friends/family and clean there. Thereby we can control the loose plastics that eventually would have landed in the oceans.
3) Donate to organizations that conduct beach cleanups to allow more distribution of cleaning equipment/gear and for more people to sign up.
4) Supporting campaigns and policy changes that reduce the production of plastics. Supportivity implied a ban in the United Kingdom, United States, and other countries on using microbeads, in toiletries and cosmetics. Furthermore, in China government action on plastics led to a ban in 2008 on thin, single-use carrier bags. Gradually it’s phasing out single-use plastics across the country.
5) Recycle the plastic around you. Recycling keeps plastics safe from the ocean and reduces the amount of “new” plastic in circulation.
6) Spread Awareness! Tell your friends and family about this problem and encourage them to try these solutions. You could also go on media and repost credible information so your followers can read about it too.
Baekeland died 23 February 1944 not knowing the mass production of plastic rised exponentially, from 2.3 million tons in 1950 to 448 million tons by 2015, which is expected to double by 2050. He could have stopped this but sadly he didn’t know the consequences, so now it is our job to save the Earth from plastic destruction.
