Unfortunately, plastic does not break down into organic substances, which means that instead of breaking down into natural components that will go back into the earth, plastic breaks down into smaller and smaller pieces of plastic until they become nurdles, which are small pellets of plastic. This opposes an issue because as plastic gets smaller, not only does it turn into a large pile of nurdles that can be ingested by seabirds and fish, it also releases the chemicals that are contained within it. According to The National Geographic, Bisphenol A, a major component in plastic, is one of the chemicals that gets released when it breaks down. Bisphenol A is a chemical that is harmful to marine animals in a number of ways. For example, algae gains it’s nutrients through absorption. Algae can absorb bisphenol A, which will affect the entire food web in the end. Small fish tend to eat algae and zooplankton, and when a fish consumes algae that has absorbed bisphenol A, the concentration of the chemical will increase for the fish through a process called bioaccumulation, which causes the chemical to build up in the body of the fish. Not only are these fish at risk of death by toxic chemicals, but when a larger fish eats the smaller fish, they are also consuming the bisphenol A, only an even larger concentration of the chemical. This will continue up the food chain, until the largest marine animals, for example, a dolphin, consumes a fish and gains a high enough concentration of bisphenol A to kill them (nationalgeographic.org). This process is called bioaccumulation, and it has a great impact on the health of marine…
There are many methods people can use to reduce plastic pollution. They can reduce, reuse, and recycle. This is the oldest method that is effective if done correctly. They can buy recyclable products with little or no packaging. Buying these products will reduce the use of plastic and will reduce recycling needs which will lead to a cleaner Earth. They can also use biodegradable plastics so we don’t have to worry so much about plastic pollution. Keeping storm drains clean and never littering will also help reduce the plastic that end up in the oceans. Everyone can join the banning of plastic bags which will reduce a significant amount of plastic pollution. Refusing to use disposables and choose to use reusable or Tupperware products. This can reduce plastic pollution because instead of just throwing the container away after using it, it can be washed and reused. People can also help to clean up your local beaches. This will help to reduce the amount of litter and plastic pollution that will eventually end up in the ocean. If one cannot help clean up the beaches, they can make donations to help the clean-up. There are a number of organizations people can donate to such as the Natural Resources Defense Council or NRDC. NRDC is one of the nation’s most effective action groups. They work to safeguard the earth — its people, its plants and animals, and the natural systems on which all life depends.…
In our effort to make cognitive for the bettering of our environment, we have decided to base our final project around the idea of reducing waste produced by the public and encouraging the public to recycle more of their waste. More specifically, we would like to focus on the reduction of plastics, such as plastic water bottles that are frequently discarded by students.…
The concern is are these ideas being developed quick enough? Only 1 in 5 plastic bottles are recycled and water bottles can take between 400 and 1,000 years to decompose. Fishing lines and nets can take up to 600 years to decompose. Plastic pollution in Lake Michigan is approximately the equivalent of 100 Olympic-sized pools full of plastic bottles dumped into the lake every year. One way to help stop plastic pollution is to stop using plastic water bottles, this simple solution would have a huge impact. U.S. and Canada together discard 22 million pounds of plastic into the waters of the Great Lakes each…
Sustainability is a major problem in society today. Over the human population has become so dependent upon artificial products and materials that a life without these consumer goods is unimaginable. In this investigation, the possibility of changing the negative way in which plastic is seen throughout the world, is challenged through the art of biomimicry.…
Many individuals underestimate the amount of plastic we use each day. According to the article “Plastic Bags Wars”, “the world consumes 1 million plastic shopping bags every minute”. Plastic bags, along with many other types of plastics, have become a leading source of pollution worldwide (Doucette). Captain Charles Moore, founder of the Algalita foundation states that we use two million plastic bottles in the United States every five minutes. Discovered by Charles Moore in 1997, the “Great Pacific Garbage Patch” is a prime example of the amount of plastic pollution that enters the ocean from land. The Great Pacific Garbage Patch has been described as a filthy plastic collage of discarded cups, straws, lids, bags, and food container’s. These giant patches of plastic debris have also been identified as the nation’s most significant marine debris problem (Murphy). This enormous amount of plastic pollution on our beaches and in our oceans is harming humans and marine life; therefore, to stop this global issue, we must prevent plastics from entering our oceans.…
The issues involving Plastic has been a popular topic amongst scholars for many years. There are many factors which influenced the development of Plastic. Cited by many as the single most important influence on post modern micro eco compartmentalism, it is impossible to overestimate its impact on modern thought. Inevitably feelings run deep amongst global commercial enterprises, many of whom blame the influence of television. Though I would rather be in bed I will now examine the primary causes of Plastic.…
In 2008, our global plastic consumption worldwide has been estimated at 260 million tons. Plastic is versatile, lightweight, flexible, moisture resistant, strong, and relatively inexpensive. Those are the attractive qualities that lead us, around the world, to such a voracious appetite and over-consumption of plastic goods. However, durable and very slow to degrade, plastic materials that are used in the production of so many products all, ultimately, become waste with staying power. Our tremendous attraction to plastic, coupled with an undeniable behavioral propensity of increasingly over-consuming, discarding, littering and thus polluting, has become a combination of lethal nature.…
overuse of plastic causes a serious pollution problem because it collects in the ocean and on land, is consumed by oceanic life, and deposits onto beaches worldwide.…
Plastic bags are used by everybody. You get them, right from a vegetable vendor to a designer store. They are convenient and easy to use. But, most of us are blissfully off the repercussions that are occurring and will take place in the future. The following paragraphs discuss the impact of plastic pollution on the environment.…
Humanity has quickly become addicted to plastic. In just over 70 years, we've gone from a lifestyle with extremely limited uses of plastics to plastic in almost everything. Even your car is about 25 per cent plastic!…
At moments, individual be compelled to do offerings also examine your best to destroy mutual plans that enriched segment your everyday sustenance. Even though Plastics seem prime factor to a daily living, from parquet and every day’s goods to food package, plastic is completely over the place. Despite, there are a plenty of techniques I decide to eliminate plastic use for the last three days. Escaping treated pre-packaged foods, taking re-usable shopping bags to market, avoiding the use of water bottles nonetheless, without severe methods it appears can be practically impossible to get rid of this non-ecological substance from ones live for good. Not all plastics has been equally use, so if we are picking and choosing plastics to rid from your life, start with the following steps.…
The Plastic Age is going strong. Plastic rules our lives and how! It’s durable, does not perish, and you don’t need to cut trees to make it. And despite being much frowned upon and debated, plastic has a strong presence in almost every nook of our lives.…
The ubiquitous plastic shopping bag, often used once & thrown away, uses up natural resources, consumes energy to manufacture, creates litter, endangers wildlife, adds to landfill waste, impacts human health and takes forever to disappear.…
More than a 100 million tonnes of plastic are produced world wide each year. The “THROW AWAY CULTURE” of ours results in the same finding their way into the city’s drainage system, thus causing inconvenience and creating an unhygienic environment. People are so accustomed to plastic, that they find it a difficulty to part with and hence DEGRADABLE PLASTICS should be brought into effect to reduce the usage of plastic in our country.…