Plastic In The Sea
Since the 1950s, when plastic was first used on a
large scale in manufacturing industries, more and
more plastic has found its way into our seas and
oceans. The problem has now reached crisis
proportions with five major gyres, or large
accumulations of plastic debris that have today
taken over around 40% of the Earth's ocean
areas.
The main problem is that plastic is not
biodegradable which means that it can take
thousands of years to break up. In the meantime
it clusters in enormous islands of rubbish that
have formed gigantic garbage heaps floating in
our waters.
This sea-borne plastic waste has become an even
greater threat to our planet's future than global
warming according to an article in the
Independent newspaper in 2014.
In fact the Guardian newspaper revealed in
December 2014 that a recent international
scientific study which was published in the PLOS
One journal has shown that there are
approximately 269,000 tonnes of plastic currently
in our oceans which amounts to about 5 trillion
pieces of plastic. What is worse is that the
problem is worsening year on year with 2.3 billion
pieces of plastic being emptied into the oceans
around South California alone in just three days.
In just one year it is estimated that 6.4 million
tonnes of plastic end up in our oceans.
Clearly these plastic refuse islands are
detrimental not only to the environment but to
our oceans' animal life. Apart from making our
beaches and shorelines unattractive and debris
strewn they are also responsible for illness and
death among our wildlife.
To date, 267 marine species have been affected
by plastic in their marine habitats. Seabirds,
ocean dwelling mammals and turtles can mistake
rubbish for food and when it is ingested they are
slowly poisoned or suffer internal blockages
which eventually cause their death. Seabirds,
dolphins and seals can become tangled in
floating rubbish like multipack plastic can
holders and packaging straps which causes them
to be strangled, starve or suffocate.
The problem arises from our disposable culture
where products are designed to be discarded
after use.
The problem could be reduced if we were more
responsible about recycling used plastics and
stopped using single use plastic bags for our
shopping. Designers should ensure products are
long lasting and durable rather than disposable
and gutters should be covered by screens to
prevent debris falling into sewers.
How Much Plastic Is In The Sea?
It is estimated that 271,000 tons of plastic are floating in
the oceans.
This is not much when you consider that each year 6.5
million tons of plastic goes into the sea at a rate of a
ton every 5 seconds!
How much plastic was dumped in the oceans in the
past?
Unfortunately, there are no exact figures available.
Live-Counter.com assumes that the present percentage
of the plastic produced that is entering the sea remains
the same as it was in 1950. This is estimated at 2.16%,
with 300 million tons of plastic produced annually and
approximately 6.5 million tons of plastic waste entering
the sea.
From 1950 to February 2015 an estimated
5,800 million tons of plastic has been produced and if
we assume that 2.16% of this entered the seas, there
are over 125 million tons of plastic waste in the ocean,
with most of it lying on the seabed. For the current
values see the counter at the top right of the page.
These figures are estimates and the counter could
deviate by up to 50% each way but it shows very clearly
the enormous littering of our oceans by plastic.
The live counter shows the 206 kilos of plastic that
enters the seas every second, which is equivalent to a
20 gram plastic bag every 8 days for every human on
Earth.
Live counter showing the amount
of plastic entering
the seas in kilograms:
Total plastic in the
world’s oceans in tons:
