73% of fish in Irish waters contain plastic
URGENT calls to scale back on waste have been made after figures revealed 73% of Irish fish have plastic in them. that the ingestion of microplastics with associated toxins may have harmful effects on these fishes, or even the fishes that feed on them.
“Our study highlights these seemingly remote fishes located thousands of kilometres from land and 600m down in our ocean are not isolated from our pollution.
“Indeed, it’s worrying to think our daily activities, such as washing our synthetic clothes in our washing machines, results in billions of microplastics entering our oceans through our waste water stream that may eventually end up in these deep sea fishes.”
The study backs up previous claims by the Whale And Dolphin Conservation which said oceans will hold more plastic than fish by the year 2050 while BBC’S Blue Planet II has also propelled the issue to the forefront.
Last week, the BBC announced it was banning all plastic containers by 2020 in light of David Attenborough’s emotional plea to humanity. Speaking on the acclaimed series the TV presenter said the team had found huge amounts of waste “even in the most remote locations”.
Mr Attenborough added: “Since its invention some 100 years ago, plastic has become an integral part of our daily lives, but every year some eight million tons of it ends up in the ocean, and there it can be lethal.
“Industrial pollution and the discarding of plastic waste must be tackled for the sake of all life in the ocean.
“Surely we have a responsibility to care for our planet. The future of humanity, and all life on earth, now depends on us.”