Photo credit: BBC News
You shouldn’t be surprised to hear that plastics are littering our beloved oceans. New survey and studies are being released all the time.
But previously, the focus had been on the oceans as a whole. A new study is highlighting the plight of the Mediterranean Sea, an area known for its biological richness and economic importance.
Researchers have found plastics in the stomachs of fish, birds, turtles and whales in this region. They even found plastic in oysters and mussels in northern Europe.
“We identify the Mediterranean Sea as a great accumulation zone of plastic debris,” said Andres Cozar of the University of Cadiz in Puerto Real, Spain. “Marine plastic pollution has spread to become a problem of planetary scale after only half a century of widespread use of plastic materials, calling for urgent management strategies to address this problem.”
The rate of plastic accumulation is similar to what was found in global studies.
The issue here is that 80 percent of the plastic found in the Mediterranean are considered microplastics, less than 5 millimeters in length.
“These very small plastic fragments lend themselves to being swallowed by marine species, potentially releasing chemicals into the gut from the plastics,” Dr Morritt, of the School of Biological Sciences, told BBC News. “Plastic doesn’t degrade in the environment – we need to think much more carefully about how we dispose of it, recycle it, and reduce our use of it.”
Though the Mediterranean contains only one percent of the world’s oceans, it holds between four and 18 percent of marine species.
“Given the biological wealth and concentration of economic activities in the Mediterranean Sea, the effects of plastic pollution on marine and human life could be particularly relevant in this plastic accumulation zone,” said Dr Cozar.
Read more from BBC News.