Annually 8 Million Tons of plastic are thrown away in our Oceans
Everyday, more than 20000 tons of plastic are dumped in our oceans worldwide. In a period of one year, it is 8 million tons of plastic. The amount is too big to imagine, here are some equivalents:
8 million tons of plastic corresponding,
- 4 million cars
- 400 million flatscreen TV's
- or 40 billion IPhone 6
We are living in a world made of plastic and can't live without it nowadays. Plastic is everywhere and we are producing nearly 300 million tons of plastic. It is cheap and has an incredible variability which makes it ideal for many products. The diversity of plastic is imaginable and it's beeing for mostly all applications in the western world, at least the product is wrapped in plastic.
Estimates are, that nearly 50% of plastic is only used once and then thrown away. Packaging is the largest end use of plastic, accounting just over 40% of the total plastic production, worldwide.
Some facts about the plastic bag:
- Approximately 500 billion plastic bags every year are used worldwide
- The Averaged period of time the plastic bag is used, are just 15 minutes
- Over the last ten years, humans have produced more plastic bags, than during the whole of the last century
Some facts about the plastic bottle:
- According to the Container Recycling Institute in the US, 100 billion plastic bottles were sold in 2016. That estimates at least 300 bottles per person, just in the United States.
- The process to produce the plastic bottle requires 6 times more water per bottle, as there is in the container itself.
- 15% of the worldwide trash comes from beverage containers
Plastic is a material consisting of a wide range of synthetic or semi-synthetic compounds. Most of the Plastic we produce can't become recycled in useful materials. Most of it is just set on fire and simply blown in the air (remember, fire --> Carbon dioxide => greenhouse gas [climate warming], just a small side effect).
Back to the plastic in the oceans, how does the plastic find it's way into the world oceans? Have a look at this graphic:
(Source: images.medicaldaily.com)
And how does it affect our oceans and the animals living in it?
The most obvious sign is the trash all over our wonderful beaches and lagoons. The plastic is washed ashore and stays there, until animals eating it or someone is picking it up, bringing it back in the circulating system. Besides the beaches, we see plastic swimming on the surface of the oceans, making it look awful and dirty.
But here comes, what really matters, the animals living in the oceans. They become entangled in the broken nets or plastic bags and are dieing a cruel, slow death. Many of them even confound plastic for food and eat it. Here are some stomaches of examined dead animals:
The percentage of ingesting or entangled species in the oceans is overwhelming
Even if we would be able to clean all surfaces of the biggest oceans in the world, it would simply be not enough. Because just a small percentage is floating, old plastic is sinking on to the ground of the oceans and lies there forever. Yet, no technology is developed which is able to clean the bottom of oceans. Even though, there are projects to clean the upper surface of the oceans, which is impressing, considering the gigantic scale of the oceans, it takes manny generations to do it.
Anyway, if you are interested in getting to know the project a little better, here is there website: https://www.theoceancleanup.com
How can you help to prevent plastic getting into the oceans? Here are 7 easy things you can do to reduce plastic pollution
Stop using plastic straws. In the US and UK, 550 Million are thrown away every day
Skip the plastic bottle... drink beverages from reusable bottles or mugs. Worldwide, over 500 Million plastic bottles used every year
Take your groceries home in reusable bags, not plastic. Worldwide, up to 1 Trillion plastic bags discarded every year
Use cloth diapers instead of disposables. In the US, Over 27.4 Billion disposables thrown away every year
Ditch the disposable razor. In the US, over 2 billion thrown away every year
Give up gum. It's made of synthetic rubber, which is a plastic. Worldwide, over 100,000 Tons discarded every year
Get the plastic off your face. Over 300,000 plastic beads in a tube of facewash
