Plastic will outweigh all fish in the sea by 2050^ - is ‘plastic soup’ already on the menu?
According to the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, by 2050, plastic will outweigh all fish in the sea. This is because plastic waste makes up 80% of all marine pollution, with almost 10 million metric tons of plastic ending up in the ocean every year^, equivalent to the volume of 4,000 Olympic-sized swimming pools.
One of the main reasons for this is that plastic is non-biodegradable – it only gets smaller and smaller. Plastic becomes brittle and gradually breaks down through exposure to sunlight or by being nibbled at by animals. This process can take up to 500 years and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has suggested that pretty much all of the plastics that we have ever used still exist^.
Once the plastic item has served its function and is no longer of use, in general, we throw it out and it goes to landfill sites. Or, it could never make it to the landfill site – it is blown away, not put in a designated bin, thrown in a hedge or left on a beach. Either way, rain and wind easily pick up lightweight plastic items and they find their way into our waterways and seas. As it makes its way along this journey it is breaking into smaller pieces, becoming lighter and more easily blown or washed away.
To add to this, due to the huge amount of waste being processed, there is improper waste disposal and illegal dumping of waste – significantly adding to the plastic in our seas.
This has led to an unsustainable situation in our oceans – the formation of plastic soup. There are plastic bags drifting on the bottom of the ocean floor weighed down by algae, huge islands of plastic garbage grouped together and trillions of tiny molecules of plastic floating across the surface. A recent estimate suggests there are 358 trillion microplastic particles[1] floating with an unknown number deeper down.
Plastics in the ocean can absorb and accumulate toxic pollutants from seawater. According to the Plastic Pollution Coalition, plastics may contain a mix of more than 16,000 different chemicals[2]. In addition, as plastics break down, they can release carcinogenic chemicals and heavy metal such as dioxins, PCBs[3] and lead.
Marine animals cannot always distinguish plastic from food and hence are filling their stomachs with indigestible plastic and plastic particles coated in toxic pollutants. Humans are not safe from this process – we consume fish and seafood that has ingested the plastics and nano-plastics, these particles are also being found in our drinking water.
If we continue at this same rate, our animals and oceans will be choked, and we will be dealing with ill-health. We are exposing ourselves to harmful chemicals and compounds that can disrupt our nervous system, fertility, and overall health[4].
Think twice before buying a plastic water bottle, getting takeout in a plastic container, or purchasing a new non-recyclable toothbrush. Avoid using wipes made of plastics and putting on non-biodegradable facial sheet masks – all these items can last forever in our environment. We must work collectively to embrace reusable alternatives and support sustainable practices. It is our responsibility to help safeguard the health of our planet for generations to come.
^https://oceanliteracy.unesco.org/plastic-pollution-ocean/
[3] Polychlorinated biphenyls are highly carcinogenic chemical compounds, formerly used in industrial and consumer products https://oceanservice.noaa.gov/facts/pcbs.html