Plastic Waste in the Oceans: Consequences and Solutions Essay Example
The percentage of plastic used has increased due to the number of products that are packaged in plastic as well as how much plastic is being wasted instead of recycled by humans. There is already a large quantity of plastic on the planet and this is the reason why the world has three plastic islands. This is due to the high amount of ocean pollution and the consumption of toxins by animals. The issue is also presented in third world countries where, in order to survive, they must search for food sources in the trash. As well as how a large number of living things are dying and along the environment due to so much plastic pollution in the ocean and on land. There is a high possibility in today’s society that humans are consuming plastic indirectly. Which is potential
...ly damaging the internal organs, but besides that damaging the planet that is called home. Microplastics are very difficult to break down, which can make it easier for an animal to find. In today's society, there is evidence of how plastic materials can affect sea life as well as small animals on land. To begin with, a lot of sea animals find pieces of plastic floating around and which they believe it is a source of food. Most of these plastic get washed up from beaches, rivers, as well as forms of water transportation.
Today, there are many ‘Garbage Islands’ located in the middle of the ocean where all trash accumulates (Cressey, 2016). An example of such an island is The Great Pacific Garbage Patch, which has recently been stated to be three times the size of
France. All of the pollution that ends up in the ocean, which then later can cause the death of the sea life as well as contaminating and potentially killing the coral. There have been predictions that in the near future there will be more plastic found in the ocean than fish (Christopher, 2018). Humans throw away more plastic than they recycle, which is also a huge amount of money wasted (McArthur, 2017). All that trash that we throw away gets thrown into the oceans and put into trash islands. Which just makes it worse for the future of the planet Earth, soon enough the ocean will be filled with trash. Also, as aforementioned, sea life will be nonexistent at the rate humans are producing trash to throw away. Since plastic does not decompose well as aforementioned, it can affect the soil nutrients as well as agriculture later on. Since the soil will not be rich enough to sustain any sort of plant. Which ties down to how it affects the food sources. One major outbreak of plastic contamination in food was in China (Wright el la, 2017).
The most popular fish in China has been found being contaminated with microplastics. This is due to a whole of pollution and plastic being found by the ocean. The aforementioned example demonstrates how dangerous the pollution found in the ocean can be. There needs to be some sort of protection that can protect the oceans and sea life. Just how energy transfers from one living thing to another the nutrients consumed by the prior consumer are transferred. This brings up how consuming sea animals who have been exposed to
plastic toxins can be harmful towards humans digestive system. It can essentially become a straight pathway for the consumption of plastic by humans (Wright et la, 2017). It can damage a lot of internal organs and it can potentially just sit in your stomach. Since plastic does not decompose easily, the toxins will stay in your body and it can all lead to death. There has been evidence found in fishes’ skin, which contains traces of plastic toxins. In addition to sea animals, microplastics have been found in other food sources such as honey and sugar. It can simply damage multiple organs. This contamination of microplastics is simply described as airborne (Wright et la., 2017). Which is another suggestion of how little the population knows of what they are consuming and where it comes from. Our food sources come from companies in which it is unsure how they produce their products as well as the process.
Which makes it more likely that humans are consuming a lot of toxins, which are found in microplastics. A major issue that was facing in today’s world is that there is a lot of poverty and hunger. Families in third world countries have to search in trash piles for food in order to survive. This becomes a problem because a lot of people have malnutrition do to talk since found in their food sources, which includes plastic. This is why the death rate in developing countries is very high but it does not affect the high percentage of birth rates and how fast the population is rising. This is what leads people to search for ways to survive, especially young
kids. This is also affecting the water they eat as well as the air they breathe. An example of this would be Hong Kong, which due to the high population they are at risk of being polluted by microplatics (So et la, 2018). These microbeads have been found in various everyday utilities, such as cosmetics and these microbeads are later on found in water. Which can put their people at risk of death and a spread of diseases, once it has spread in the water. The thing is that scientist have not been able to find a specific set of symptoms that are caused by indirectly consuming plastic. They do believe it is filled with toxins and can easily be transmitted to humans through seafood. This, of course, differs in the United States, there is a large quantity of plastic but there is not a financial issue along with it. Since it is a developed country, the microplastics are mainly consumed through the food as aforementioned.
In the United States, there are programs to help those in need, such as food stamps and soup kitchens. In the United States, there are also ways to protect the citizens from dirty water and there is also acts put in place to protect the water, such as the Clean Water Act. There are more options and opportunities in the United States than in third world countries. A lot has to do with how much the population has raised as well as how much government action is taken. That is why there is a lot of pollution in other places just because there is not a law in place to
fix the issue. The more humans wait around and continue to use the same amount of plastic covered products, the less of a chance there is to bring the planet Earth back to a healthy state. There are many steps humans can take in order to help the environment. Farmer’s markets can help with reducing the plastic that is used in produce. It also reduces the amount of plastic bags used for shopping and groceries. Purchasing a reusable bag can become beneficial for many necessary activities. Recycling is the best solution, not only is it removing plastic from the trash but also it can potentially save a lot of money. Also purchasing a reusable water bottle and filters for water can dramatically decrease the amount of plastic in the environment. Additionally, trying to go zero waste Doing these things and many more can help with decreasing pollution in the ocean caused by plastic.
Recently there has been a lot of sea turtles dying due to plastic straws. Reducing the use of these and getting reusable straws can cause a dramatical change. For example, instead of using the plastic cups provided in Starbucks, the replacement can be mugs and reusable thermos. Going green can save an individual a lot of money, as well as the country. It is a huge benefit to reduce plastic and there are actions already being taken. One of these benefits is the BPA Free plastics which have fewer toxins and are said to be safer for human use. There are many things being done in order to help clean up the Earth. Earth’s contamination is a huge problem and it could potential
he affect us in the future. This is why it is best to take action now and to recycle plastics instead of polluting the Earth. In order to continue having a healthy planet, we need to take healthy actions and promote the green thumb. There are many things that can be done in order to do this and influence everyone else to do so as well. This can also benefit the people living in their own countries to possibly improve their diet and state of living. It would be something beneficial for the developing countries who are currently struggling with possible water toxins found in their food and water sources. Which is why we should take care of the earth and all other living creatures cohabiting the Earth beside humans. By taking small actions such as picking up after ourselves brings us one step closer to a cleaner home.
