Change Your World Week Winter 2023 (Archived)

Plastic Pollution is the general term of "plastic trash" that winds up in our oceans, wildlife's environment and even our drinking water. Have you ever wondered where all the plastic and trash go?

As you may not care about the problem, I am here to explain why it is important for our planet, ocean, wildlife and ourselves to tackle on this problem head on. 

• 70 Percent of the world is our ocean, but every drop of water is linked to the ocean.
• In 2022, an estimated 5.25 million pieces of trash are floating in the ocean.
• We produce about 300 million tons of plastic waste yearly.
• Plastic Pollution threatens our food safety and our human health. 
• Some countries bomb the fish, destroying the coral reefs and leaving plastic particles behind for others to ingest, spreading nationwide
• Plastic production contributes to climate change
• Marine wildlife mistake plastic for prey, causing marine wildlife death
• Microplastics have found in our drinking water, salt and our beef
• Plastic affects tourism with all of the filth on the beaches, causing a negative effects on the economy 

 The first image is a jellyfish, and the second is a trash bag.

​​​​​​Plastic is made from petroleum with properties suited for a variety of applications including: Sports equipment, building, household, packing, construction, agriculture, electronics and much much more. If discarded improperly, plastic waste will harm the environment. Plastic releases harmful chemicals into the soil affecting the ecosystem, and bodies of water, including our drinking water. Plastic does not dissolve. It takes over 500 years for a simple plastic toothbrush to decompose. Imagine the millions of plastic trash not decomposing, piling up and winding up in our oceans. 

You may think to yourself "What are some ways I can help?" When I started learning about this topic, I immediately said "This seems out of my way." and "Why would I even want to do this?" The simple answer is: These solutions so minor can save our ocean, planet and our future generations. 

• Switch to paper based products such as paper cups
• Buy biodegradable products
• Start using reusable items such as cloth grocery bag, glass containers and bee's wax wraps
• Cook at home more instead of take-out
• Buying items in bulk
• Buying items at a refillery which is low/zero waste shopping
• Donate and Buy items secondhand 
• Stop buying water bottles, and drinks that have the 6 pack yokes
• Participate in volunteer cleaning beaches events
• Reduce, reuse and recycle.

• Patricia Newman. Planet Ocean: Why We All Need a Healthy Ocean. Millbrook Press ™, 2021. EBSCOhost, https://ezproxy.delta.edu/login?url=https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=e70 0xna&AN=2694100&site=eds-live&scope=site&ebv=EB&ppid=pp_Cover
• Plastic pollution and why we need to enforce global rules on fishing vessels. Premium Official News, 19 July 2022, p. NA. Gale Business: Insights, link.gale.com/apps/doc/A710979559/GBIB?u=lom_deltacoll&sid=bookmarkGBIB&xid=deb39dba. Accessed 13 Mar. 2023.
• Marine Plastic Pollution. IUCN, Plastics, 20 July 2022, https://www.iucn.org/resources/issues-brief/marine-plastic-pollution.
• Oakes, Kelly. What Would Happen If We Stopped Using Plastic? BBC Future, BBC, 9 June 2022, https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20220526-what-would-happen-ifwe-stopped-using-plastic.