![]() ![]() There is growing concern about effects marine microplastics may have on people, including toxic chemicals leaching from plastic litter and the fact that “microscopic particles are making their way into the food chain and affecting human health. “All sectors and individuals contribute to this pollution – from poorly controlled waste sites, illegal dumping and mishandled waste on land to ropes, nets, floats and other debris from fishing, merchant shipping, oil rigs, cruise ships and other sources”. One thing we do know is that the presence of plastics in our ocean is linked to human activity – on land and at sea. So, while river-borne plastics are undoubtedly a major source of marine litter, the data is still limited and we should not ignore marine pollution from other sources. It also helps target regions where better waste management practices are needed. To 4 million tonnes per year), it is a good indicator of the importance of rivers as a source of marine litter. Although there is a great degree of uncertainty with this estimate (ranging from 04. It does not mean that 90% of all plastic in the ocean is coming from these 10 rivers. ![]() In other words, 90% of the plastic coming from rivers is from these 10. In a recent study of the amount of plastic litter transported by 57 river systems, 10 rivers were estimated to be responsible for 90% of it. However, it’s not possible at this stage to accurately verify these figures. It is also carried by rivers. One estimate of total plastic input to the oceans from all sources is around 8 million tonnes per year, and about 80% is attributed to land based-sources. It comes from ships and lost fishing gear. It is dumped directly or is blown in by the wind. Plastic gets into the ocean in many ways. In order to deal effectively with the problem of plastic pollution – or any other environmental challenge – we need facts, not myths or scare stories. One consequence of this is that there are a number of myths in wide circulation about the problem of plastic in the ocean, and what it means to the environment and human health. But sometimes the issue is blown out of proportion or misconstrued. There have also been hundreds if not thousands of news stories on the subject. There is a lot of research going on and new papers are being released almost every day. The problem of plastic in the environment has received much attention in the last few years. If this trend continues, another 33 billion tonnes of plastic will have accumulated around the planet by 2050. Now, nearly 70 years later, plastic production exceeds 300 million tonnes a year and the world population is on its way to 8 billion. That was a time when the Earth’s population was 2.5 billion people and the global annual production of plastic was 1.5 million tonnes. But in reality, plastic products were only introduced in the 1950s. It is so widespread in our lives that it’s hard to imagine a time without it. It feels like we have always had plastic. ![]()
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