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Journalist by training, and an academic in aspiration, Shamseer Mambra currently works as a freelance journalist, after spending three years in the newsrooms of some of the reputed media houses in India. When not at work, he likes to read, click photographs and go for a ride on his bike.
Anish, I would think this article is getting more popular! Do you have a more concise list of the particular problems that plastics pose to the oceans? Definitions can be separate or linked. Thanks for putting the info out there! We are working on creating more compostables and composting in the world and want to see single-use plastic eliminated and ensure that we stop the flow of plastics into the environment.
We should rise up against the Conservatives. Climate change is a threat. I should be in school but instead I am here. This is a great article about plastic in the ocean it tells me everything I wanna know about the plastic in the ocean. Naturally as an artist using marineplasticdebris , at this stage we can only do beachcombing pickups thus reducing further photodegration into microplastics. Very helpful and Informative…. Are you familiar with www. Your email address will not be published.
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In , experts called for more research into the effect of micro- and nano-plastics on human health. Undoubtedly, the biggest impact consumers can make is to reduce their use of single-use plastic, which contributes a significant share to plastic pollution in the sea. Recycling plastic wherever possible is also important.
Volunteering for group clean-ups of rivers and beaches helps to reduce the amount of loose plastic that makes its way into the sea. Supporting campaigns and policy changes that reduce the production of unnecessary plastics is crucial, too. This has led to huge successes in the past, such as the ban in the United Kingdom, the United States and other countries on using microbeads — tiny spheres made of plastic — in toiletries and cosmetics.
Similarly, in China government action on plastics led to a countrywide ban in on thin, single-use carrier bags. Researchers and innovators are developing solutions to stop plastic getting into the sea. In the Chinese port city of Xiamen, university researchers are developing a camera surveillance system to identify plastic and forecast its trajectory downriver, so they can stop it before it enters the sea. The European Space Agency is even using its satellites to track plastic waste from space , in the hopes of informing new policies that will limit plastic pollution.
Advances in developing biodegradable plastics could also have a huge impact on ocean health: researchers are currently working on a bioplastic that degrades in seawater , which could ultimately reduce the amount of waste that accumulates there. But the only way to truly solve this problem is to dramatically reduce the production of plastic, which means curbing our addiction to it.
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Keeping these cookies enabled helps us to improve our website. Problems associated with the ingestion of plastics include development of internal and external wounds, impairment of feeding capacity due to the buildup or blockage of the digestive system, decreased mobility and predatory avoidance, and toxicity. Ingestion of plastics by seabirds has been shown to reduce body weight, inhibit fat deposition, and reduce reproductive capacity.
Due to the fact that seabirds feed over wide ranges and are an upper-trophic level predator that is, they eat prey high on the food chain , they act as early indicators of pollutants such as plastics in the marine environment. Ingestion of plastic debris by seabirds, fish, and sea turtles has been widely documented, and ingestion has been reported from marine mammals as well. The potential for plastic ingestion is largely associated with situations where plastic particles can be mistaken for food.
For example, sea turtles readily consume plastic bags and other floating debris that appear similar to their gelatinous prey, jellyfish. Predatory organisms, such as fur seals, may indirectly consume plastics through consumption of ocean fish and other prey that have consumed plastic particles mistaken for food. In addition to degrading the habitats and ecosystem services that humans use, plastic aquatic debris can directly interfere with navigation, impede commercial and recreational fishing, threaten health and safety, and reduce tourism.
Large debris, such as derelict fishing nets and lines that float at or just below the surface, pose the greatest threat to vessel navigation. Lines and nets can become wrapped around propellers and entrained in intakes of motors, and vessels may strike large items, damaging hulls and propellers. Additionally, "ghost fishing" by lost, drifting nets and pots can kill fish and invertebrates valuable to local commercial and recreational fisheries.
It was estimated that derelict crab pots capture approximately , pounds of Dungeness crab in Puget Sound annually. Ghost fishing can compete with active fishing for limited resources, undermining economic opportunities while also decreasing the reproductive capacities of fish and invertebrate stocks.
Immobilization of commercial and recreational vessels can result in increased costs of navigation due to lost time, costly repairs, as well as the loss of human life. In a tragic example, derelict fishing gear contributed to the sinking of a Korean passenger ferry in that resulted in the deaths of passengers. Humans can also be directly harmed by aquatic trash, becoming entangled in nets and lines while swimming or diving, or being injured by sharp debris that accumulates on beaches.
In most instances they are able to free themselves. In rare instances entanglement has resulted in injury and even death. Additionally, sharp debris that accumulates on beaches regularly results in puncture wounds and lacerations.
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