Eight Million Tons Of Plastic Dumped In Ocean Every Year, By Laura Parker

In 1988, it was determined that the United States alone, was producing 30 million tonnes of plastic per year (Derraik, J.G.B., 2002). This can be compared with the global and annual production of 260 million tonnes of plastic as of 2012 (Pearson, E., 2014). Plastics are lightweight, durable, and cheap to make. This makes them incredibly easy to sell and manufacture. However, these attributes are many of the reasons why plastics are the most prominent type of marine debris, and why they are a serious hazard to various ecosystems and the organisms that live within them (Derraik, J.G.B.,

Due to humans’ excessive use of plastic and our inability to properly dispose of our waste, our ocean is unfortunately facing the consequences. This increasing problem is due to the fact that as plastic breaks down, it truly doesn’t completely decompose, instead it turns into microscopic pieces of plastic known as “microplastics”. These tiny pieces of plastic cover every inch of our ocean and there is nowhere on earth they cant be found. In addition research has shown that these microplastics act as sponge for chemicals existing in our ocean and when marine life inevitable consumes these toxic pieces of plastic it bioaccumulates through the food chain until eventually reaching humans. Overall, because our plastic pollution is increasing

Over 8 million tons of plastic enter the sea every year according to the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History. That is similar to over 8 million bear-sized piles of trash being polluted into open waters each year. Sources of plastic pollution are strictly from humans from littering, and improper trash removal. Fines are given to people who litter. Companies have laws to follow that are supposed to ensure proper removal of waste. However, the actions being used to solve the problem are not doing enough. Plastic is still continuously filling the water at increasing rates year and every year and by every single country. As more countries develop, more plastic is poured into the oceans. Due to human pollution, the marine ecosystem is

In the ocean, plastic debris injures and kills fish, seabirds and marine mammals. Marine plastic pollution has impacted at least 267 species worldwide, including 86% of all sea turtle species, 44% of all seabird species and 43% of all marine mammal species. The impacts include fatalities as a result of ingestion, starvation, suffocation, infection, drowning, and entanglement. For example, Leatherback turtles often mistake floating plastic bags for jellyfish. A plastic bag can cause a turtle to choke and eventually die. Our marine life is hurt as a result of our irresponsible actions and it's on our power to change

In modern society, plastic, the highly malleable and cost-effective polymer, dominates the compositional structure of products within all industries. It is an essential ingredient found in packaging, construction, transportation, electronics, healthcare, and everyday common necessities. At every turn, this durable substance can be found in whichever way, shape, or form, and for this reason, it is the most widespread pollutant to enter the earth’s oceans. An estimated, “15% to 40% of [all] littered or dumped plastic enters the ocean each year,” (Chen 1). In addition to this, approximately, “4 million to 12 million metric tons of plastic washed offshore in 2010 alone,” and continues to rise each year with the mass consumption and unceremonious disposal of plastics (Chen 1). Therefore, there is enough plastic in the ocean to circle the earth numerous times. However, a large portion of these plastics go unaccounted by. The interconnecting forces of ocean currents, wind patterns, and other geological features results in the complex movements of plastics within the ocean, and thus, the creation of garbage patches and their accompanying ecological ramifications.

"What Will It Take to Get Plastics out of the Ocean?"?Ensia. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 May 2016.

Ocean dumping and trash pollution are huge environmental health problem in the United States and around the world. Not only does the water pollution affect water we use, but endangers and kills animals and plants that use the ocean as their home or as a source of food to survive. If trash, such as plastic, makes their way into the main sewage system, they also can make their way to the ocean when water treatment system facilities are overflowed with rain water. In addition, some boater’s will dump their trash directly into the sea, which at one point was the main cause of plastic being in the ocean.

Plastic Pollution is a man made disaster, but it is rapidly growing every day. It is causing harm to oceans, sea life, and even human life, as we know it. It is important to prevent plastics from ever touching the ocean and we need to do something about it soon. Plastic pollution is something that is dramatically impacting the environment and taking action is something we have to do before it affects more of our planet.

Since it’s commercial inception in the late 1930’s, plastic has revolutionized, modernized, and undoubtedly eased the human experience. Unfortunately, this leap in consumer and industrial technology also came with an unforeseen and devastating side effect. Plastic pollution in the world’s oceans is serious and disgustingly under-looked problem. Due to the influx of hundreds of thousands of tons of plastic, the marine landscape is changing rapidly. This issue isn’t just exclusive to oceans either. The world’s rivers and seas are also feeling the brunt of non-biodegradable waste. The scientific community is scrambling to find a solution to this ubiquitous issue. Plastic pollution in the world’s oceans has already lead some environmental activists and entrepreneurs to develop systems and machinery to prevent further damage. Ultimately, the future of our planet’s oceans fall not into the hands of the engineers and scientists, but into the hands of the common man. Our collective actions and attitudes towards oceanic pollution will will be the catalyst for either triumph or turmoil.

Although many recognize that there is a problem with plastic pollution in the ocean many are unaware of how extreme this problem actually is and how quickly it is progressing. Plastic was first introduced in the 1950’s and it only took 10 years for scientists to begin to recognize the presence of plastic in the ocean. In 1972, J.B Colton of the National Marines Fisheries Service in Rhode Island published articles in Science warning that the toxic from plastic in the ocean was at its all-time worse and he predicted that it would not be long until the toxic would affect marine animals (Moore 1). “The increasing production of plastic, combined with present waste-disposal practices, will probably lead to greater concentrations on the sea surface” (Colton 1). Later on that same year the 1972 Marine Protection, Research, and Sanctuaries Act was approved and passed by the U.S. Congress in order to regulate ocean dumping of waste and provided a research program on ocean dumping. However, this does not solve the problem of the amount of plastic in the ocean. What was not realized at this time was the fact that ocean dumping was not the only

The presence of plastic debris will not only effect oceanic habitat and ecosystems but have an economic effect on anthropogenic activities such as tourism on beaches and fishing industry. Although many countries are eager to prevent and manage waste surrounding their coastal waters; none are willing to take responsibility over the large accumulation of waste in ocean gyres, known as garbage patches, and for good reason. These garbage patches are located in

One reason why people should not throw trash in the ocean is that it harms ecosystems. Ecosystems in the world are already in trouble from humans, but when people throw trash in the ocean it affects the animals in the ocean, animals on land, while also negatively affecting humans. To illustrate, “The ocean is the largest ecosystem on earth and provides 99 percent of the living space for life” (Baher). Thus, the oceans have more importance than most people think, so people need to protect it. Another reason people need to protect the oceans is because the oceans and organisms inhabiting it aren’t capable of taking care of it. The author points out that, “Pacific Regional Environment Program (SPREP)'s Director General Kosi Latu noted that plastic was found in 97 percent of fish species studied in the Pacific alone.WEF

“In Australia, you can tell how far you are away from a city by how much plastic is on the beach and in the water near the beach” Dr Wilcox explained in an interview with the ABC. “About every 11 years the amount of plastic doubles”. It is estimated that there are up to 51 trillion plastic particles in the ocean, and around 8 million tonnes of plastic went into the ocean in 2010 alone. All this plastic finds its way into the ocean, where billions of marine animals call their home. Many animals confuse plastic littering for food, including sea turtles. Plastic bags are responsible for the deaths of over 100,000 marine animals every year. This a significant number of animals dying each year, all because of plastic bags being littered and making its way to the ocean.

Many people remain oblivious to the seriousness of plastic pollution, a member of the Council of the British Plastics Federation and a Fellow of the Plastics Institute, stated that “Plastics litter is a very small proportion of all litter and causes no harm to the environment except as an eyesore”(Peña). “His comments not only illustrates how the deleterious environmental effects of plastics were entirely overlooked, but also that, apparently, even the plastics industry failed to predict the great boom in the production and use of plastics of the past 30 years. In the marine environment, the perceived abundance of marine life and the vastness of the oceans have lead to the dismissal of the proliferation of plastic debris as a potential hazard.” (Derraik)

Plastic is one of the most important material for items production because plastic is very flexible. For examples, water bottle can be made with plastic, chair can be made with plastic, and utensils can be made with plastic. Plastic has helped many manufacture company to reduce the cost for material and increase the amount of production. As a result plastic is a very helpful material for human. However, plastic is also one of the major consequences human are facing, because production of new plastic items are increasing but the old plastic items are not decreasing. Therefore, causing numerous places to have piles of plastics, and ocean is the place that contains most of the plastic waste. As a result, many sea species are being kill by these plastic waste that human dump into the ocean. According to the article “Polymers Are Forever” by Alan Weisman, he wrote that “In 1975, the U.S. National Academy of Science had estimated that all oceangoing vessels together dumped 8 million pounds of plastic annually” (Weisman). The quote demonstrated how much plastic was dumped into the ocean forty-years ago. Over the forty years, human’s population is continuously increasing, which mean amount of plastic will also increase because most of the product are made by plastic. Therefore, human are once again ignoring the consequence of over producing plastic, and continue with the benefit that plastic provides. Moreover, plastic will not only affect sea animals, it will affect the quality of