THERE are billions, possibly trillions of plastic debris that are in the ocean and are creating havoc in the marine ecosystem. Did you know that according to experts, around 100,000 marine creatures a year die from plastic entanglement and these are the ones found. Approximately 1 million sea birds also die from plastic.
After long exposure in the ocean, some plastics break down into small pieces. These small debris which are called microplastics, are eaten or ingested by small marine animals. As a result, plastic is now in the marine food chain. Eventually those plastic returns to us when we eat plastic-contaminated fish.
Other than fish, plastic has also found its way in the food we eat. Salt for instance, a necessary ingredient in cooking, is now contaminated with plastic. There’s a study which revealed that salt taken from different countries contain plastic contaminants from ocean pollution.
The study done by Aquatic toxicologist Ali Karami and his team from the Universiti Putra Malaysia analyzed sea salt extracted from eight different countries: Australia, France, Iran, Japan, Malaysia, New Zealand, Portugal, and South Africa. In their lab they removed suspected microplastic particles larger than 0.149 mm (0.0059 inches) from 17 different salt brands. Microplastics were found in all but the French salt.
And this is probably the most disturbing of all - plastic in our drinking water. According to a research done by Orb Media, plastic has contaminated tap water from around the world. Out of 159 drinking water samples they took from around the world, 83 percent tested positive for synthetic fibers. The U.S. had the highest contamination rate of all the countries studied, with 94 percent of samples contaminated.
Even bottled water is not free from plastic. Orb said they found plastic fibers in bottled water from leading U.S. brands, and in homes that use reverse-osmosis filters. Based on their results, a person who drinks two liters of water a day, or beverages like coffee, tea, and soda, might ingest eight plastic fibers or around 2,900 plastic each year.
So where do all these plastic fibers come from? According to Orb, one confirmed source is the washing machine. Synthetic textiles like fleece, polyester, Spandex, and acrylic shed fibers with every wash. Estimates vary, from 1,900 fibers emitted by a single garment, to 700,000 from a 13-pound (6 kilogram) load of laundry.
There’s another possible source - dryers. The machine vent air rich in fibers. Our clothes are emitting plastic due to normal wear and tear in the same way a cat sheds fur. In addition to our clothes, carpets, upholstery, and other wear-heavy synthetic textiles are also shedding fibers.
Plastic waste is all around us. Let’s do our share in reducing this menace. Avoiding single-use plastic bags by bringing reusable bags, avoiding disposables and too much packaging are some of the steps that we can take.