Microplastic in Atlantic Ocean 'could weigh 21 million tonnes' - BBC News
S E E D E D C O N T E N T
A study, led by the UK's National Oceanography Centre, scooped through layers of the upper 200m (650ft) of the ocean during a research expedition through the middle of the Atlantic.
Such an amount of plastic - 21 million tonnes - would be enough to fully load almost 1,000 container ships.
The findings are published in the journal Nature Communications.
Dr Katsia Pabortsava, from the National Oceanography Centre , who led the study, said by measuring the mass of very small plastic particles in the top 5% of the ocean, she and her colleagues could estimate "the load of plastic in the entire Atlantic" which is "much larger" than the previous figure.
"Previously, we haven't been able to balance the amount of plastic we found in the ocean with the amount we thought we had put in," she said.
"That's because we weren't measuring the very smallest particles."
On their expedition - from the UK to the Falkland Islands - she and her colleagues detected up to 7,000 particles per cubic metre of seawater.
They analysed their samples for the three most commonly used, and most commonly discarded, polymers - polyethylene, polypropylene and polystyrene - all often used in packaging.
The findings, the team hopes, will help future efforts to measure the ecological and environmental damage that might be caused by these plastic fragments, by providing a more "robust measure" of its accumulation in remote parts of the ocean.
Prof Jamie Woodward, an expert in plastic pollution, from the University of Manchester, told BBC News the findings confirm earlier studies that the microplastic load in the oceans is "much higher than [we had] estimated".
"The geographical scale of the study is impressive," he said.
"And the authors estimate inputs over 65 years. This is important because microplastics have been flooding into the oceans for many decades.
"We now need to understand the ecological impacts of this contamination in all parts of the ocean, since they have been in the oceans at all depths for a long time."
Amid the coronavirus pandemic, some environmental groups have reported the disposable face mask is now one of the most common items of plastic litter.
Susannah Bleakley, from the Cumbria-based charity Morecambe Bay Partnership, which co-ordinates beach clean-ups , told BBC News: "We now find more disposable masks than plastic bags.
"What we're really asking is, as much as possible, can people reduce their use of single-use plastics and if people can dispose of it carefully."
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As a manufacturing engineer that has been involved in plastics processing for over 30 years, I can with direct knowledge of the subject can clearly state that 95% of all thermoplastics can and should be recycled. The three materials cited in this study being the most predominant, polyethylene, polypropylene and polystyrene are highly recyclable.
Plastics aren't going away either as they provide lightweight, durable, and cost effective alternatives to metals and ceramics. It shouldn't come as a surprise that the major plastic pollutants come from materials found in single use packaging. The simple solution is to change what we do with these materials after we unpack what we purchased. All of that packaging needs to be recovered and recycled.
5 or 6 years ago we started putting even the smallest pieces of plastic into the recycle container. It is amazing in addition to all the bigger plastic things how the smallest added up, including single use plastics which we now avoid.
This problem really has to be addressed before we completely destroy our planet.
As a superpower and the major polluter, China should lead the way.
A little research on your part would show you that China is moving forward at a very rapid pace in recycling.
Also now that China quit accepting our recycling we're are going to actually have to do it ourselves.
Back in the mid 2000s, I specified, installed and oversaw a plastic recycling operation. The trick is to understand your costs. When oil prices are high, which plastics track with, you can cover your costs to recover and process post consumer products. If oil prices are down, you cant recover at a price that competes with virgin materials. Most of what we recovered went into stuff like garden edging, or extruded decking blended with wood particles.
We purchased a used line that recovered stuff like plastic bags and sheeting. That operation was a headache and a half. The thinner the bags were, the faster they would just degrade into carbon and be of no use. I'm sure there is newer technology out there to address that issue if not, I'm all for getting rid of plastic bags.
Most people don't know but upwards of 80% of carpet is made of reclaimed soda and water bottles.
We purchased patio furniture made of recycled plastic. I actually went to where they were manufacturing it and spoke with the owner. He told me it was more expensive but to him, it was well worth it to help the environment. He is so busy that it takes roughly one to two months to have your order ready.
When we got back to the states and started researching patio furniture, we went to plastic as well. It is more expensive, but it will be decades before we will have to replace it. Stainless steel screws and all. We must have selected the same supplier, as ours will be three months till delivery.
The recycled plastic patio furniture is indestructible, comfortable, and quite good looking.