Life Below Earth Booklet - Flipbook - Page 8
PLASTIC IN OUR WATERS
Another human activity which is one of the most
signi昀椀cant threats to our ecosystems is the pollution
caused by microplastics entering the oceans. Items
like 昀椀shing nets and plastic rings can entangle species,
restricting their movement, obstructing them and
causing injury (Osman et al., 2023). Wildlife such as
birds, whales, 昀椀sh and turtles mistake indigestible
plastic waste for food causing fatal consequences.
It is estimated that 11 million tonnes of plastic waste
enters the ocean every year, with 9% going into the
ocean as a primary microplastic already smaller than
5mm.
Microplastics are small plastic particles, less than
5mm in size, that pose a serious risk to both terrestrial
and marine life. There are two types of microplastics;
primary and secondary. Primary microplastics are
formed from commercial products including cosmetics.
It is estimated that 35% of primary microplastics
come from domestic and industrial washing cycles,
highlighting the importance of re-using garments and
washing less. You can also check that your washing
machine has a factory 昀椀tted micro昀椀bre 昀椀lter.
8
700,0
micro昀椀bres can
from a single loa
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