Table of Contents
>What You Need To Know About Plastics In The Ocean
Effects of Plastics in the ocean statistics. Also, what effects of plastic pollution in the ocean, and how does it affect marine life and the ecosystem? Hence, did you know 97% of the water in the world is in the ocean? Therefore, it is said the sea is the Earth's life support. Furthermore, over a billion people rely on the protein provided by the sea. Plus, the ocean regulates our climate and absorbs CO2.
Nevertheless, our ecosystem is becoming unsalvageable due to the ocean's pollution rate of around 12.7 million tons of plastic annually. Therefore, what we do over the next ten years, will determine the condition of the ocean for the following next 10,000 years.
Additionally, the plastic waste statistics are alarming and sad all at the same time. Thus, the statistics below will outline everything you need to know about the damage we are causing to the ocean’s ecosystem and marine life and how it impacts humankind. Therefore, we can do our part by living a more sustainable lifestyle and ditching plastic. Finally, we can change how we store produce and replace plastic products with more sustainable containers.
>The FACTS Impacts Of Plastics Pollution
- Over 900 different species entangle in or ingest marine litter
- North Sea region during the period 2010-2016 95% of Northern Fulmars had plastic in their stomachs and 56% exceeded the 0.1 gram objective.
- 56% of beached North Sea fulmars have more than 0.1 g of plastics in their stomachs
- Wide range of materials, including plastic, metal, wood, rubber, glass and paper, however it is dominated by plastic which accounts for up to 90% of the items found on beaches
- credit: (ospar commission)
>How many tons of plastic are in the ocean each year?
Sea Pollution Facts
- It is estimated that 1.1 to 8.8 million ton of plastic waste enter the ocean from coastal communities each year.
- It is estimated that there is a stock of 86 million tons of plastic marine debris in the worldwide ocean as of the end of 2013, with an assumption that 1.4% of global plastics produced from 1950 to 2013 has entered the ocean and has accumulated there.
- From the 1950s to 2018, an estimated 6.3 billion tons of plastic has been produced worldwide, of which an estimated 9% has been recycled, and another 12% has been incinerated.
- The bodies of 90% of seabirds contain plastic debris.
- It is estimated that 10% of the plastics in the ocean are nurdles, making them one of the most common types of plastic pollution, along with plastic bags and food containers.
- Thompson predicts 300,000 plastic items per square kilometer of the sea surface and 100,000 plastic particles per square kilometer of the seabed.
- the microplastic mass per cm3, they estimated that Earth's seafloor contains ~14 million tons of microplastic
- Volunteers collected over “59,000 plastic bags, 53,000 sachets, and 29,000 plastic bottles,” as reported by The Guardian.
- Around 275 million tons of plastic waste are generated worldwide; between 4.8 million and 12.7 million ton are dumped into the sea.
Effects Of Plastics Waste In Ocean Pollution Statistics
How much weight of plastic is in the ocean?
There are approximately 51 trillion microscopic pieces in the ocean weighing 269,000 tons. That's as much as 1,345 blue whales. Even with the massive expanse of the world's oceans, this still adds up to a shocking density of plastic. On average, there are 46,000 pieces of plastic per square mile, per the SANTA CRUZ WORKS.
- In 2019, the production and incineration of plastic will contribute greenhouse gases in the equivalent of 850 million tons of carbon dioxide (CO2) to the atmosphere.
- As of 2016, it was estimated that there were approximately 150 million tons of plastic pollution in the world's oceans, estimated to grow to 250 million tons in 2025
- 5 trillion plastic pieces (defined into the four classes of tiny microplastics, large microplastics, meso- and macroplastics) afloat at sea.
- The litter delivered into the oceans is toxic to marine life and humans. The toxins that are plastic components include diethylhexyl phthalate, a toxic carcinogen, as well as lead, cadmium, and mercury.
- 5.25 trillion plastic pollution particles weigh as much as 270,000 tons (2016). This plastic is taken by ocean currents and accumulates in large vortexes known as ocean gyres.
- Within this study, 192,213 litter items were counted, with an average of 71% being plastic and 59% consumer-related macroplastic items.
- It is approximated that these garbage patches contain 90 million tons (100 million short tons) of debris. The waste is not compact, and although most of it is near the surface of the pacific, it can be found up to more than 30 meters (100 ft) deep in the water.
- it was estimated that at least 267 different animal species have suffered from entanglement and ingestion of plastic debris. It has been estimated that over 400,000 marine mammals perish annually due to plastic pollution in oceans
- Credit: Wikipedia
