THE Catholic Church is asking the public to refrain from using microplastics due to its harmful effects to human health and the environment.
This was stressed by the priests during their masses, as they read the pastoral letter issued by Bishop Patricio Buzon of the Diocese of Bacolod.
“Let us avoid microplastics by not using straws, sachets because a recent study showed that it is very hazardous to human health,” the pastoral letter said.
It said that study after study has shown microplastics, considered tiny bits of plastic a few millimeters in length or less, cause all manner of ecological damage and negative health effects on the human body.
The letter also stated that due to this growing body of evidence, many governments have banned, or are in the process of banning, the use of small plastic bits in commercial products. Popular examples of banned products include glitter and microbeads that are used as exfoliants in cosmetic products.
“Glitter is manufactured from plastic sheets and is found in a wide range of products, including many cosmetics. When washed down the drain, glitter can enter the environment and find its way into sensitive marine ecosystems,” it added.
The pastoral letter stressed that microplastics are discovered all over the world’s oceans, from the surface to the seafloor.
“They are eaten by microorganisms, fish, shellfish, birds, and other marine life. Plastic bits collect in the stomachs of animals, where they can lead them to die of undernourishment,” it said.
Researchers have become increasingly worried about its effects on fish and other marine life, it added.
“Most microplastics derive from two sources: plastic trash shredded bits by UV rays oxidation and small pieces of plastic like glitter and microbeads. These plastics do not degrade and will probably stay in the oceans for hundreds of years. Researchers have determined about 8 trillion microbeads enter waters in the US every day,” the bishop’s letter said.
It stressed that the risks to human health from microplastics are significant because microplastics in the ecosystem commonly absorb in long-lasting organic toxins that may cause cancer and damage reproductive health.
“These toxins include polychlorinated biphenyls, which were once commonly used in electrical machinery; and polyaromatic hydrocarbons, which are created by the incineration of fossil fuels,” the study further showed. (TDE)