There is also a series of briefer reports on filmmaking, kiosk messaging design, and communicating science to the public. The most dangerous pollution, it turns out, comes from commonplace items in our homes and workplaces. View plastic pollution research papers on academia. Plastic pollution is created when people throw plastic items away instead of recycling. Understanding plastic pollution can feel overwhelming. Human activities are responsible for a major decline of the worlds biological. Trash is also carried to sea by major rivers, which act as conveyor belts, picking up more and more trash as they move downstream. Approximately 500 billion plastic bags are used worldwide each year, with more than one million bags used every minute. The spread of useless and undesirable information can have a detrimental effect on human activities. These guides will cover how plastic enters the environment, its impact on wildlife, microplastics, and even how it effects on our health. Plastic pollution today should be stopped immediately.
Microplastic can penetrate fishs brains, altering behavior for the first time scientists have shown that the smallest bits of marine plastic pollution called nanoplastic can move up the aquatic food chain and be absorbed by predators brains, affecting their ability to hunt. Plastic pollution from the land gets carried into the sea and other water bodies plastics may be carried into the sea through rivers, streams, and storm drains ships may also be a source of pollution out at sea. To prove this point, for one week authors rick smith and bruce lourie ingested and inhaled a host of things that surround all of us. Your average plastic bag has a typical working life of just 15 minutes. Of those 500 billion bags, 100 billion are consumed in the united states alone. Plastic pollution curriculum and activity guide pa sea grant. Over 80% of plastic pollution in our ocean comes from landbased sources such as littering and poor waste disposal systems. Produced by earth day network for the end plastic pollution. A read is counted each time someone views a publication summary such as the title, abstract, and list of authors, clicks on a figure, or views or downloads the fulltext. Plastic pollution is the introduction of plastic products into the environment which then upset the existing ecosystems in different ways. You probably know that one way people cut down on waste is by recycling. Pdf the accumulation of plastic and products made of plastic in the environment lead to plastic pollution which imposes a hazardous effect. The most dangerous and common pollution of the century, should be plastic pollution.
See how sc johnson is helping reduce ocean pollution and increase recycling through a partnership with plastic bank. The plastic pollution can adversely affect lands, waterways and oceans. Maybe you even help sort plastic bottles and other recyclables from the trash at home. The most visible and worr ying impact of marine plastic pollution is the su ocation and entanglement of hundreds of marine species, including seabir ds, turtles, shes, mussels, crustacea ns. Each year, plastic pollution kills more that 100, 000 marine creatures. The beach is fouled with 2 to 3 tonnes of plastic pollution. Plastic pollution involves the accumulation of plastic products in the environment that. Although recently there has been a slight decrease in plastic production, this is unlikely to be. Informational websites plastic pollution coalition. Plastic pollution coalition plastic pollution coalition is a global alliance of individuals, organizations, businesses and policymakers working toward a world free of plastic pollution and its toxic impact on humans, animals, the ocean and the environment. Recent studies have revealed marine plastic pollution in 100% of marine turtles, 59% of whales, 36% of seals and 40% of seabird species examined.
Pdf plastic pollution and its adverse impact on environment and. Over 150 plastic bottles litter each mile of uk beaches. Plastic pollution facts and figures surfers against sewage. Join the coalition to take action on a person, community or a global level. A 2014 report by the world bank indicated that the municipal solid waste is doubling at an astonishing rate, much of which is categorized as singleuse plastic items. Ecosystems and fisheries, pollution in the ocean, and critical condition. Environmental effects of microplastics many persistent organic pollutants for example, pesticides, pcbs, ddt, and dioxins float around the oceans at low concentrations, but their hydrophobic nature. First discovered by sailors, the masses of plastic debris floating at the center of vast ocean vortices called gyres are today under close scrutiny by scientists. National seminar on impact of toxic metals, minerals and solvents leading to environmental pollution2014 journal of chemical and pharmaceutical sciences issn. The prominence of plastic pollution is correlated with plastics being inexpensive and durable, which lends to high levels of plastics used by humans.
The global plastic consumption throughout the globe was approximated at 260 million tons in 2008, and it was predicted to be more than 300 tons in 2015 according to the global industry analysts. Ecological and human health impacts 1science for environment policy indepth reports plastic waste. Tough truths about plastic pollution proprofs quiz. It is the contaminants of air by the discharge of detrimental substances. Over 150 organizations back call to ban oxodegradable plastic packaging. Plastic pollution primer and action toolkit earth day. These pollutants include heavy metals such as cadmium and lead, and chemicals such as benzene, dioxins, and other pollutants, which all release harmful toxins into our air, water, and bodies. Pdf plastic pollution risks in an estuarine conservation. Plastic bags are difficult and costly to recycle and most end up on landfill. Animal waste collection description animal waste collection as a pollution source cont rol involves using a combination of educational outreach and enforcement to encourage residents to clean up after their pets. Plastics are persistent largescale pollutants, and plastic debris such as bottles, straws, containers, and plastic wrap and particulates have been found in many environmental niches, from mount everest to the bottom of the sea. Most of the plastic trash in the oceans, earths last sink, flows from land.
Since beach pollution is a major contributor of microplastic pollution, beach cleanup efforts turn out to be much more than esthetic exercises. Air pollution is the presence of one or more disadvantageous content in such quantity and for such duration, as it is catastrophic, or tend to be catastrophic, to human health and welfare, animal or plant life. At the heart of the problem is one of plastics most valued properties. Between 60% and 80% of marine debris is derived from plastic products and enormous quantities of plastic are concentrated in the 5 largest gyres of. Plastic pollution involves the accumulation of plastic products in the environment that adversely affects wildlife, wildlife habitat, or humans. Plastic has direct and indirect negative impacts on biodiversity, and as plastic waste enters the food chain through unsuspecting channels such as microparticles, an environmental issue transforms into a major challenge to human health and livelihood. A plastic milk jug takes 1 million years to decompose. Reduce plastic pollution by choosing products that do not contain plastic. These pollutants cause environmental degradation and also affect different living organisms and their habitats negatively. We have all contributed to this problem mostly unknowingly and we must work to reduce and ultimately to end plastic pollution. Plastic pollution this module1 is intended for elementary or secondary education teachers interested in teaching their classroom about plastic pollution and for anyone interested in learning about the impacts of plastic pollution on our environment and society and actions we can take to diminish this problem. Ocean plastic is causing pollution around the globe.
Our materials are produced by scientific researchers and build on our 10 years expertise as leaders in plastic and the oceans. Every year, around 500 billion plastic bags are used worldwide. So much plastic is flowing into the sea that marine animals are dying, our beaches are polluted, and our health may even be at risk. Ecological and human health impacts november 2011 plastic waste is a growing concern and the drivers behind it look set to continue. Next time youre out and about and on the go, try and buy your standard takeaway lunch without gaining some. Public education and outreach regarding septic operation and maintenance can be assumed to produce some positive effect on water quality, but studies on resident behaviors regarding septic pollution prevention practices are limited. Plastic bags, retrieved from rubbish heaps and bins in the capital, will now be sent to paris, the fashion capital of the world. Marine plastic pollution poses a direct threat to the balance of marine ecosystems and human health. It stays there for a very long time, damaging nature and the ecosystems that support life on earth.
Plastic pollution facts and information environment. Causes of plastic pollution the reckless dumping of plastic waste is yet one of the environmental topics that has attracted the attention of many conservationists and nations. Clean india journal editor april 1, 2010 in environment, professional, waste management. Often this causes them to be unable to eat or move. The first step in cleaning up our oceans is better understanding where ocean trash is coming from and what it is like.
Choose a reusable glass water bottle over a plastic one. Pollution is no longer just about belching smokestacks and ugly sewer pipesnow, its personal. Information pollution also referred to as info pollution is the contamination of information supply with irrelevant, redundant, unsolicited, hampering and lowvalue information. Plastic pollution we can make things better 1950 2015 plastic waste has a significant impact on the environment every day, a gigantic amount of plastic leaks into the environment, the seas and oceans 5 to million tyear. Rain or overwatering flushes that litter through a storm drain system or directly to creeks, streams and rivers that lead to the ocean. Plastic pollution poses even greater impacts on the environment because of its widespread usage and its durability component. Research article plastic pollution in the worlds oceans.
Facts and figures on marine pollution united nations. Plastic pollution in the worlds oceans is ubiquitous. It impacts the environment and our health and wellbeing. The word plastic derives from the greek plastikos meaning capable of being shaped or molded and, in turn, from. More than 5 trillion plastic pieces weighing over 250,000 tons afloat at sea marcus eriksen1, laurent c. Plastic is accumulating in the worlds oceans at a staggering rate.
Because plastic wasnt invented until the late 19th century, and production really only took off around 1950, we have a mere 9. Animals can be significantly harmed or killed by plastic pollution. Another easy action is to bring your reusable bag to the store. Plastic pollution in the sea is a symptom of a more systemic issue originating on land and. But did you ever wonder where all those recyclables go. Plastic pollution primer action toolkit e r da e tw r k plastic pollution is one of the most important environmental problems that we face today. Plastic pollution is a big question that is posed to the world, right now. Due to the nonbiodegradable nature of plastic, it is quite dangerous to make our environment polluted with plastics.
The other 20% comes from fishing and shipping activities including lost or discarded fishing gear. Most plastic pollution at sea starts out on land as litter on beaches, streets and sidewalks. Right now, most plastic is being wasted sent to landfills or, more likely, incinerators. After making a class graph of this information, students discuss what happens when trash is thrown away and discover four strategies for using resources wisely.
Plastic pollution united nations educational, scientific. Sometimes its hard to know how to educate friends and family about our cultures wasteful plastic habit without sounding like a quartet of violins or a preacher. Approx 5,000 items of marine plastic pollution have been found per mile of beach in the uk. Plastics that act as pollutants are categorized into micro, meso, or macrodebris, based on size. Technoenvironment plastic pollution interesting facts the average person uses an average of 200 pounds of plastic each year. Plastic pollution facts world ocean day for schools. Examples include misinformation, pornography, junk email and media violence. Anita and shalabh ahuja, founders of the new delhibased ecofriendly ngo, conserve. An estimated eight million tons of plastic the equivalent of over 26,600 boeing 747 planes are swept into our seas and oceans every single year, mainly via rivers and coastal urban centres, through, for example, uncaptured waste, sewage systems, road runoff and littering. Pdf on jul 1, 2014, florian thevenon and others published plastic pollution find, read and cite all the research you need on researchgate. More information to raise awareness and encourage responsible. Plastic pollution, harmful accumulation of synthetic plastic products in the environment.
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