Throwing Plastic in Seas

One of the most serious threats to our oceans is plastics pollution. Plastic constitutes approximately 90% of all trash floating on the ocean’s surface, with 46,000 pieces of plastic per square mile. Why is there so much plastic in the ocean? Unlike other types of trash, plastic does not biodegrade; instead, it photo-degrades with sunlight, breaking down into smaller and smaller pieces, but they never really disappear. These plastic pieces are eaten by marine life, wash up on beaches, or break down into microscopic plastic dust, attracting more debris.

Plastic is also swept away by ocean currents, landing in swirling vortexes called ocean gyres. The North Pacific Gyre off the coast of California is home to the Great Pacific Garbage Patch, the largest ocean garbage site in the world. The floating mass of plastic is twice the size of Texas, with plastic pieces outnumbering sea life by a measure of 6 to 1. These floating garbage sites are impossible to fully clean up.

Plastic poses a significant threat to the health of sea creatures, both big and small. Over 100,000 marine mammals and one million seabirds die each year from ingesting or becoming entangled in plastic.

It takes 500-1000 years for plastic to degrade. Even if we stopped using plastic
s today, they will remain with us for many generations, threatening both human and ocean health. Despite these alarming facts, there are actions we can take to address the problem of plastics.

BURNING PLASTICS

ILL EFFECTS OF BURNING PLASTICS

Being readily combustible, these plastics when burned under open and uncontrolled fire conditions at low  temperatures plastics generate black fumes of smoke and toxic volatilisation products, which become incorporated into the ambient environment, resulting in human and environmental exposure .

In addition, large amount of greenhouse gases such as methane and carbon oxides and particulate matter are emitted into the atmosphere. When garbage or refuse is burned under open-fire low temperature conditions, the waste plastics that they contain contribute to smoke generation and infuse toxic decomposition products of plastics into the smoke which can potentially cause significant health and environmental concerns.

The byproducts of plastic combustion are airborne particulate emission (soot) and solid residue ash
. Several studies have demonstrated that soot and solid residue ash possess a high potential of causing significant health and environmental concerns. The soot when generated is accompanied with volatile organic compounds (VOCs), semi-VOCs, smoke (particulate matter), particulate bound heavy metals has the ability to travel thousands of kilometers, depending on prevailing atmospheric conditions, before it can drop back on earth and enter into the food chain.

The toxicity of combustion products generated from burning of plastics has been evaluated by various researchers under experimental conditions. Significant amount of pollutants of environmental and health concern including carcinogens such as PAHs(  polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons) , nitro-PAHs and dioxins have been identified in the airborne particulate emissions. Further, these particulates have been found to be highly mutagenic. PAHs in the range of 8-340 ppm have been observed in the soot which is significant enough to cause cancer.

 Researchers have also found high concentration of persistent free radicals (unstable and highly reactive molecules) both in the soot and the solid residual ash which are considered to be very important in the creation of adverse health effects especially to human lungs.

. DEHP is one of the compounds among the plasticizers used in plastic manufacturing  that has been described by USEPA as a probable human carcinogen, a potential endocrine disruptor and
is believed to be harmful by inhalation, generating possible health risks and irreversible effects. This compound is also released during the combustion of plastic.

With the above discussion, it is worth emphasizing that open uncontrolled burning is by no means an
environmentally sound option to dispose of waste plastics including waste agricultural plastics such as discarded grain storage bags.

NOW WHEN YOU SEE SOMEONE BURNING THE PLASTIC WASTE, STOP HIM/HER FROM DOING SO.

Fate of plastic