Week 2: Plastic Pollution 101
Sam m -
Hello everyone! Today, I thought I might do a more general educational post on plastic pollution and give you guys a better foundational knowledge on the issue and perhaps give you more context for my project.
Plastics were first produced in the 19th century, but more advanced manufacturing techniques were invented in the early 20th century. At first, there was little regard for the potential environmental impact of plastics. However, scientific awareness of plastic pollution began in the early 70s with the observance of larger macro-plastics in the marine setting. Concurrently, researchers noted a high amount of particularly small fragments, which we now call microplastics (and are defined by most as being <5 millimeters in length). In the following decades, public awareness around the issue began to increase and attention was brought to potential solutions to the marine plastic issue and more recently to microplastic pollution. To this day, there are various initiatives and fundraisers, such as the popular Team Seas collaboration between two popular YouTube creators that has raised tens of millions of dollars. Despite this, plastics are still entering the environment at a high rate.
Additionally, most public and even scientific attention is focused on marine plastic pollution. Until recently, there was little attention on terrestrial plastic pollution by the scientific community, and there is minimal public attention on this issue. It’s not known how much plastic has entered terrestrial habitats, but it’s possible the vast majority of macro and microplastics are terminating on land, especially in agricultural settings. Depending on where the plastics end up, they are known to have a sweeping array of effects, although there is not a complete consensus on what those are and their extent. One example is how some plastics contain dangerous fillers or heavy metals like cadmium, which may cause more harm to ecosystems than the plastics themselves. Another example is the possibility that plastic fragments lodge themselves in the transport tissue of plants or the digestive tracts of animals. These two examples should hopefully highlight just how sweeping the effects of plastic pollution are.
These facts might paint a gloomy picture, but there is hope! Firstly, scientists are looking for solutions every day. Some are looking into plastic-eating bacteria, while others are creating policy approaches for national leaders, amongst others. There are also more treaties on plastic pollution. You can also do your own part, however small the impact! You can try to buy less plastic products, and properly dispose of what plastics you do use. Most of all, I believe the first and most important step is informing yourself and others of the issue, so read up, share, and raise awareness if you can!
Finally, I’ll give you all a quick update on the progress of my project. I’ve completed dewrapping the hundreds of makeshift thermal banks I mentioned last week, and I’m still moving towards the planting of my mint. I should have a more exciting update after spring break! Thanks for reading and have a good rest of your day!
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