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Effect of plastic on the ocean
Effect of plastic on the ocean
Effect of plastic on the ocean
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In many parts of the world, there is an increasingly large number of plastic products. According to Sharon Jacobsen’s research, nearly 500 billion plastic bags are consumed worldwide annually. This means an average person uses 83 plastics every day (1951). However, we are using plastics without concern and understanding of their impacts on our environment and our health. To begin with, what are plastics? Claire Le Guern Lytle defined plastics as polymers, long chain molecules that comprise of subunits (monomers) connected together by chemical bonds; and they are manufactured substances delivered by chemical reaction. Most plastics are made from carbon and petroleum. However, individuals may not recognize these elements in the plastic items they use daily such as plastics bags, plastics tanks, plastics toys, etc. In fact, plastic is a non-biodegradable substance, composed of toxic chemicals which can “destroy” the Earth and people’s health. Moreover, as plastics are exceptionally solid and sturdy, they do not dissolve in at least 450 years, which means preserving the poison forever. Although plastics which are valuable, vital, and useful material in application production, they negatively affect our oceans, lands, and human health. Essentially, one fundamental concern is probably that plastic garbage with the “throw …show more content…
As more people realize the cycle of this non-biodegradable material is limited and dangerous, they will reduce using plastic products. “The only thing that can save the world is the reclaiming of the awareness of the world” said by Allen Ginsberg. When people have enough information and warning about plastics, people can make a huge difference to the plastic pollution problem. In many country today, paper bags preferred by a large number of supermarkets and shops can be a vivid example of the positive result of such
Plastic bags have never been free. Instead, their private cost is incorporated into the price of the purchased products, but this is not the only cost of plastic bags for the consumer (Allan 2002). There is additionally a social cost, a price paid for the impact of the pollution upon the aquatic environment and, ultimately, upon the consumers own health. Of the 3.92 billion plastic bags that Australia consumes annually(Commonwealth of Australia 2016), 80 million enter the litter stream, with 1-3% entering Australian waterways (Allan 2002; Dunn, Caplan & Bosworth 2014). About 35% of aquatic life has ingested plastic, resulting in the human consumption of plastic from seafood and eventually leading to increasing cost of healthcare for the consumer
National Center for Manufacturing Sciences. (2004, August 11). Environmental Roadmapping Initiative. Retrieved October 14, 2011, from Plastics Impacts, Risks and Regulations: http://ecm.ncms.org/ERI/new/IRRPlastics.htm
Every year, an estimated 8 million tons of plastic waste enters our environment, severely polluting oceans, beaches, forests, and even the towns and cities we live in. In the ocean alone, it is believed that 5.25 trillion pieces of plastic pollutes the waters (“Plastic Statistics”, Ocean Crusaders).The majority of plastic pollution can be traced back to single-use items, such as grocery bags, bottles, and plastic packaging. According to United Nations Environment, “At the rate we are dumping items such as plastic bottles, bags and cups after a single use, by 2050 oceans will carry more plastic than fish…” (“UN Declares War on Ocean Plastic”, UN Environment). This pollution is a major problem and endangers not only the environment, but human
In recent years, it has become blatantly obvious that the Earth’s environmental deterioration is showing signs towards a cause of global concern. Drastic increases in water pollution, global warming, and deforestation, among other environmental issues have caused a sudden desire to raise awareness of and to resolve human-initiated problems. One of the more controversial topics involving human impact on environment is the excessive use of plastic, specifically in the form of plastic bags. Used for their convenience, durability, and inexpensive nature, plastic bag production and consumption has exploded, allowing them to become a seemingly necessary part of everyday life. Unfortunately, however, this abuse of plastic bags has brought a slew of environmental health
Plastic makes our lives easier, but they will make more difficult through the damage, they cause to our air quality, soil, and water. We need to change our habit of using the plastic and be part of the solution to make this world better place.
Plastic is continuously polluting our oceans and endangering the life in these waters. The problem is that our ocean is being polluted with plastic. Items from plastic bags to water bottles are being thrown out into our waters and affecting the environment. There is, if not more, billions of pounds of plastic in the ocean. 40% of Earth’s
There has been a vast advancement in the industrial development. The development of plastic has been a boon to the modern era. The development and advancement in the modern technology has played significant role in the various stages of the modernization. Although the introduction to plastics has been a significant step in the industrialization, the excessive use of the plastic products has affected environmental sustainability. Proper planning is very essential to implement the sustainability actively. There are many steps taken by various businesses to minimize the harm the plastics can do to the environment by reduce, reuse and recycle. One of the recent examples of planning to strengthen sustainability is by Walmart Inc. It has taken initiative
“Just 14% is recycled, some is landfilled” (Tunnicliffe 1). The resin identification is mainly used to classify plastics; however, it helps in recycling because, in the recycling process, plastics are divided by their resin code. Furthermore, most of the remaining plastic waste ends up in oceans. This explains the enormous number of 8 million tons of plastic waste dumped into the oceans each
... converting plastic waste into useful products are being affected by pollution; this contamination is found within containers where plastics are collected. But the same risk of pollution carries downside consequences in which workers and people responsible for cleaning and disinfecting the plastic materials are not doing the best to eliminate plastic waste, and to disinfect the infected bacteria and microorganisms from the atmosphere and environment. Organizations from China and India are the largest in the world, they collect and purchase used plastic from United States, Europe, Asia and Latin America (Minguez 2013). These companies do not bother to sanitize the products before the recycling process; for this reason the planet earth is getting a worse environmental condition, and it is destroying lives of living beings, and natural resources as well (Uddin 2014).
Using plastic bags are second nature to people in this day and age. Warner acknowledges, “Much to the dismay of the environmentally conscious citizens worldwide, the ubiquity of the free plastic carryout bag has bred nonchalant consumers who take this modern convenience for granted” (646). Although some people are conscious about the environment, people strive more for convenience and do not think about the impacts using bags have not only on the environment, but on themselves as well. If something is bad for the environment, it will alternatively be bad for humans as well. When plastic bags are exposed to the sun from being littered all around, the ultraviolet rays cause the substances of plastic bags to weaken. After the substances weaken, the substances become invisible to the naked eye. The substances that are no longer able to be seen are toxic to humans (Warner 649). As a result of plastic bags being littered around, animals consume plastic bags. This is negatively affects humans because animals are often consumed. When humans consume animals like, fish, there can be plastic in the fish’s belly, which then transfers to the humans and this poses a concern for human’s health. Humans are negatively affected by plastic bags because of the toxic chemicals in plastic bags, as well as, consuming animals with plastic in their
The comparison between how people and companies turn plastic wastes into treasure implies the infinite possibilities of reusing plastic and protect the environment. Then, through the interviews with the recycle companies and scientists in Japan and America, the documentary further supports its argument by proving that only two types of plastic can be truly recycled, most of the others will stay for hundreds of years in the dumping fields and the plasticizer goes through chemical reactions in the ocean which make the plastic particles poisonous and possibly cause diseases to all living organisms. The documentary criticizes the disposable lifestyle and introduces the possibility of future progress by substituting plasticizer with other bio-additive so that they can be fully recycled or reproduced in many different ways. The documentary effectively conveys the message that plastic can be extremely harmful, and appeals audiences to pay more attention on reducing daily usage of plastics, such as plastic water bottle, and producing and recycling with the new
This essay will discuss the various harmful effects of plastic bags, and demonstrate the risks that these bags impose on humans, animals, and the environment. It will also discuss a series of suggested solutions that could help reduce plastic bag usage. Although plastic bags appear to be fragile and light, their negative environmental effect is devastating. Plastic bags may cause large amounts of pollution at every step of their limited life cycle, from the extraction of raw materials, production, transportation, and recycling or disposal. Plastic bags can be defined as the most damaging form of environmental pollution.
It is sad to say but humans have played their part in deteriorating the earth. We have polluted and killed the very thing that takes care of us. If you ride by any lake or river you find trash and debris around it. In the “The Call of the Wild” the author says that we have committed war against the earth by the dumping of poisons and explosives upon it (337). Unfortunately, plastics are the things that are doing the most harm to our environment. Plastics are convenient and we use them everyday and these are the things that we find in the oceans, rivers and lakes. They are harmful to the earth as well as human health by directly intoxicating us with lead, cadmium and mercury. Plastic debris laced with harmful chemicals are often found inside of our marine life and can poison them. Plastic can survive for thousands of years and many invasive species are found in them which can disrupt our habitats. We need to limit our consumption of plastics and make sure that they are disposed of in their proper places.
Everyone has heard a cashier one time or another mumble, “Paper or plastic?” as he put their groceries in a bag, but do shoppers know the effects of each vessel in which they carry their comestibles? There are many issues and benefits to both paper and plastic. The making and recycling of both paper and plastic bags can harm the environment. One must also look at the costs of making each bag. The convenience of each is also something to look at. Many people jump to conclusion that paper bags are better for the environment without knowing the facts. Since plastic bags are preferred by customers and plastic bags actually do not hurt the environment as much as paper ones do, consumers should feel at ease when choosing plastic.
In the 1870’s, plastic was discovered in the United States when John Wesley Hyatt was trying to create a different material to make billiard balls (Manrich, 3). Little did he know it would majorly evolve into material we use everyday. However, plastics are now taking over our landfills. The average American throws away one-hundred and eighty-five pounds of plastic a year (Popescu, 121). The answer to decrease this statistic is easy: recycling. I believe that recycling will help eliminate littering and the growth of landfills, while also creating jobs for the unemployed. Not only does recycling plastic help eliminate littering, but also reuses the plastic so there is not a production of additional unneeded plastics. The