Plastics plague our oceans
More than 100,000 marine mammals, one million sea birds die yearly from plastic entanglement
We are in the throes of a prolonged plastic revolution. In a post-Second World War society, plastic was welcomed as a material that could ease the burdens of daily life. But this revolution has lasted for roughly 70 years, and the majority of the world’s population does not know how to live without plastic.
The material’s production has reached 300 billion tons per year, and much of what is produced is meant to be singleuse. Millions of tons of plastic are thus dumped into oceans to be disposed of each year. Plastic is cheap and versatile. It is used to cut down the time and effort that we continue to covet, but there are many material alternatives that can sustainably serve the same purpose as plastic.
As omnipotent as the ocean may seem when beheld from the shores of land, it cannot withstand the dangers of plastic. There are literally islands of plastic formed by the meeting of ocean currents. This is not science fiction; it isn’t part of a Utopian Plan in which grand cities are built atop the Atlantic. More than 100,000 marine mammals die yearly from plastic entanglement. More than one million sea birds die each year from the same cause.
There are a few major sources of plastic in the ocean. About 20 per cent of ocean trash comes from ships (some fishing boats off the coasts of P.E.I. are guilty contributors) and the remaining 80 per cent comes from litter blown to sea or simply dumped into the water. Much of this trash consists of plastic bottles and plastic bags.
These objects are meant to be foreign to an aquatic ecosystem, but they are now posing a threat to creatures in the oceans. The damage does not stop here. Plastics break down into micro plastics, are consumed by marine creatures, and enter the food chain. The concentration of toxins increases as they pass through each level of the food chain.
Although the human race is generally an inland species, toxins from plastics in the ocean have a profound effect on our health. Once plastics enter the
marine food chain, they make their way into human systems by way of food products containing fish or marine mammals. Lead, cadmium, mercury, DEHP (a carcinogen) and other toxic substances are introduced to the human body.
Several plastic toxins have been directly connected to cancers, birth defects, issues of the immune system, and childhood developmental issues. As the general public has been aware of for quite some time, BPA found in plastic bottles and packaging is also known to interfere with hormonal function, which plays a critical role in each individual human life.
Plastic toxicity in the oceans has a global reach. Products travel from continent to continent; we cannot isolate these toxins. This means that we must make an effort to prevent aggravating the problem and begin cleaning up after ourselves.
On a broad scale, we must stop throwing away plastic, and bring plastic alternatives like hemp into use. Here’s what you can do as a caring individual: consume less plastic; reuse what plastic you have; and recycle what can no longer be of use. Become involved with (or support) a grassroots organization devoted to protecting ocean waters (check out SOSS P.E.I. and Sierra Club Atlantic). Let us protect the incredible expanse of glimmering waters, free of plastic obstruction.
Visit www.plasticoceans.org for more information about the impacts of plastics in the ocean.