The plastic objects that we get rid of, such as plates, glasses, bottles or bags, can end up in a landfill, be incinerated or recycled. However, due to the action of wind and rain, this waste can also reach the sea even when we throw it away.
They may end up abandoned due to the action of storms, wind or rain, or simply because they have not been disposed of properly. This way they can reach rivers or other waterways and even in the sewer system of urban areas. Once there, unless they are removed beforehand, their final destination will be the sea no matter how far we are from the coast.
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Nowadays only 9% of all the plastic that we have produced and consumed until the present time worldwide has been recycled, 12% has been incinerated, and the vast majority, 79%, has ended up in landfills or in the middle ambient.
Plastic objects can also reach the sea from landfills, by the water that flows through them. In addition, we also find plastics in the sea that come from deliberate garbage discharges, from accidental discharges from ships, or from effluents from sewage treatment plants and wastewater treatment plants. 80% of the waste that we find in the sea comes from land, while the remaining 20% from the maritime activity.
Because the plastic is very persistent and disperses easily, we can find plastics in all corners of the planet, from the Arctic to the Antarctic. Once the plastic objects reach the sea they can be ingested by the marine fauna and accumulate inside, they can stay in suspension or floating on the surface, they can finally sink and remain on the seabed, or they can even be trapped in the ice of the Arctic. Plastics have been found even in the deepest areas, more than 10,000 meters deep.
The plastics that we find on the surface are only the tip of the iceberg, since they represent less than 15% of all plastics in the sea. Currently, five concentration zones known as plastic "soups" have been identified: one in the Indian Ocean, two in the Atlantic (North and South) and two in the Pacific (North and South).
These surface areas have a high concentration of microplastics. On the coasts and the coast, you can also find high concentrations of plastics, especially in regions with high coastal populations, with inadequate waste management systems, intensive fisheries, or high tourism.
In the Mediterranean we also find a large amount of microplastics, similar to those of the "soups" of plastics. In fact, between 21% and 54% of all the microplastic particles in the world are found in the Mediterranean basin.
During the investigations carried out by Greenpeace in 2015, an average of 320 garbage objects were collected per 100 meters of beach sampled in Spain, with 75% of these waste being plastic objects. Every day 30 million cans and plastic bottles are still being abandoned in Spain, which pollute our terrestrial, coastal and marine environment.
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Effects of plastics on the ocean
The ocean provides us with food, employment, unimaginable tourist destinations and, in addition, it is the habitat of essential species. However, for decades it has received millions of tons of plastic waste that today represent one of the most serious environmental problems on the planet.
There is no doubt that the ocean sustains life on earth. If you think about holidays, you have to keep a fact in mind: 80% of tourism in the world is done near the sea. So, why are we filling it with plastic?
The containers and products made of this material that today are in the seas can surround the Earth four times in a single year. Figures like this should be enough to alert us and produce changes. And it is that 80% of the pollution in this ecosystem is caused by the human being that, among other things, consumes plastic for decades without any concern for waste, the place where they end up and the effects they cause.
Absorption of pollutants
In addition to the toxicity of plastic, plastic particles in the sea have the chemical property of attracting and accumulating hydrophobic (oily) contaminants in seawater, such as DDT and PCBs. That is to say, plastics are chemical "sponges" for dangerous pollutants that reach the sea from agriculture and industry and open the door for them to enter the food chain.
Secretion of endocrine disruptors
While plastic attracts and accumulates certain toxins, it also secretes others that contaminate seawater. 100% of the collected seawater samples contain bisphenol A, a potent endocrine carcinogen disruptor used in the manufacture of polycarbonate and other plastics.
Once plastic objects reach the marine environment, they take between decades and hundreds of years to decade. Degradation time depends on the type of plastic and the environmental conditions to which it is exposed (sunlight, oxygen, mechanical agents). In the case of the oceans, UV radiation from sunlight is the main agent that degrades plastic.
The action of the waves accelerates this process and as a result the larger fragments are broken into smaller pieces, generating microplastics. During all this time until they degrade, all plastic objects that reach the sea can cause serious damage to the marine fauna.
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Currently, some 700 species of marine organisms are affected by this type of pollution. Each year, more than one million birds and more than 100,000 marine mammals die as a result of all the plastics that reach the sea.
Isn't it about time we changed our habits ? What are your thoughts?