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Ocean pollution: 11 facts you need to know

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1. Oil spills aren’t the biggest problem. Only 12% of the oil is caused by oil spills/ It mostly comes from our roads,rivers and drainpipes.

2. There is more plastic than fish. Up to 12 million metric tons of plastic is dumped into the ocean each year. By 2050, ocean plastic will outweigh all the ocean’s fish.

3. Garbage patches. There is too much garbage in the ocean so the ocean has created garbage patches. The biggest one is called the Great Pacific Garbage Patch and has over 1.8 trillion pieces of trash.

4. Microplastic. Ocean plastic can break into smaller pieces called micro plastic. It can take hundreds of years for that plastic to degrade. And releases chemicals into the water.

5. Indonesia and India. Most of the plastic from our planet comes from 2 countries. Indonesia and India. They produce more plastic than anywhere else and together they produce more plastic than the world’s coastal environments seven countries combined.

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Ocean pollution: 11 facts you need to know

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With each passing year, we expose the ocean to more pollutants, from trash to chemicals. Fortunately, it’s not too late to clean up our act.

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Chemicals are everywhere-in anything we eat, the air we breathe and the things we use. Most chemicals are made by humans and they can fulfill a variety of functions. During manufacture, storage, and transport, chemicals can leak into the surrounding environment, which can lead to ocean pollution.

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Chemical pollution refers to the contamination of our environment with chemicals that are not found there naturally.

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How big is the problem of chemical pollution?

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How big is the problem of chemical pollution?

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There are an estimated 100,000 chemicals on the EU market today and new chemicals are entering the market all the time. People are unable to keep up with the increasing flow of chemicals and currently in the EU they have information and understanding of on just 500 of those 100,000 chemicals.

To understand the impact of a chemical, it’s important to find out how it’s used and where it’s found. But today, the chemical composition of materials and products as well as the emissions into the environment remain largely unknown.

What we do know is that these chemicals have been found even in the countryside. Recent research suggests the level of chemical pollution has crossed a “planetary boundary” and we need urgent action to ensure a stable ecosystem.

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Chemical pollution refers to the contamination of our environment with chemicals that are not found there naturally.

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How does chemical pollution affect our health?

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How does chemical pollution affect our health?

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Harmful chemicals can get into our bodies if we breathe them in, eat them, drink them or are absorbed through our skin. Some of the most harmful chemicals are “forever chemicals”, that get into our bodies and environment and do not break down, and “hormone disrupting chemicals’, that block, mimic or disrupt our natural hormones with dire consequences.

For example, Bisphenol A (BPA) is an extremely harmful chemical that has been used in the manufacture of plastic products such as water bottles and food containers. It has been shown to cause cancer and heart disease as well as impact fertility.

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Chemical pollution refers to the contamination of our environment with chemicals that are not found there naturally.

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How does chemical pollution affect our environment?

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How does chemical pollution affect our environment?

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Chemical pollution can affect the delicate balance of the Earth’s ecosystems.

Mining, agriculture and waste disposal have caused substantial soil pollution. The presence of heavy metals like cadmium, mercury and lead can affect soil quality and reduce the number of micro-organisms that support soil fertility. The health of soil impacts biodiversity and the ability of populations to produce food.

The ocean suffers from a high level of plastic and other chemical pollution which has led to ‘dead zones’ – where the oxygen level in the water cannot support life. High or prolonged exposure to harmful chemicals has also impacted marine biodiversity

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Chemical pollution refers to the contamination of our environment with chemicals that are not found there naturally.

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Ocean Pollution: Causes, Effects, Solutions | TDS

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Ocean pollution is pollution of chemicals and trash in the ocean. Ocean pollution is caused by Nonpoint source pollution, Intentional discharge, oil spills and Littering and Ocean mining. Why is ocean pollution a problem? It can be harmful to ocean life, We need the ocean and a threat to human health. A recent studies have shown that rough 171 trillion plastics particles are in the ocean. The world all together would have about 2.3 tons of trash.

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Ocean Pollution: Causes, Effects, Solutions | TDS

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The impacts of ocean pollution are far-reaching. Take a look at the causes of ocean pollution, its effects, and the steps needed to combat it.

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Microplastic are extremely small plastic particles. They are defined as particles less than 5 millimeters  in diameter, causing them to be hard to clean up with machines because of their size.

Plastics turn into microplastics when they have a breakdown caused mainly by the sun’s radiation and waves.

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Photograph by David Liitschwager

Microplastics, as the name implies, are tiny plastic particles. Officially, they are defined as plastics less than five millimeters (0.2 inches) in diameter-smaller in diameter than the standard pearl used in jewelry. There are two categories of microplastics: primary and secondary.

Primary microplastics are tiny particles designed for commercial use, such as cosmetics, as well as microfibers shed from clothing and other textiles, such as fishing nets. Secondarymicroplastics are particles that result from the breakdown of larger plastic items, such as water bottles. This breakdown is caused by exposure to environmental factors, mainly the sun's radiation and ocean waves.

The problem with microplastics is that-like plastic items of any size-they do not readily break down into harmless molecules. Plastics can take hundreds or thousands of years to decompose-and in the meantime, wreak havoc on the environment. On beaches, microplastics are visible as tiny multicolored plastic bits in sand. In the oceans, microplastic pollution is often consumed by marine animals.

Some of this environmental pollution is from littering, but much is the result of storms, water runoff, and winds that carry plastic-both intact objects and microplastics-into our oceans. Single-use plastics-plastic items meant to be used just once and then discarded, such as a straw-are the primary source of secondary plastics in the environment.

Microplastics have been detected in marine organisms from plankton to whales, in commercial seafood, and even in drinking water. Alarmingly, standard water treatment facilities cannot remove all traces of microplastics. To further complicate matters, microplastics in the ocean can bind with other harmful chemicals before being ingested by marine organisms.

Scientists are still unsure whether consumed microplastics are harmful to human or animal health-and if so, what specific dangers they may pose. Even so, many countries are taking action to reduce microplastics in the environment. A 2017 United Nations resolution discussed microplastics and the need for regulations to reduce this hazard to our oceans, their wildlife, and human health.

National Geographic Society

October 31, 2023

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Microplastics are tiny plastic particles that result from both commercial product development and the breakdown of larger plastics. As a pollutant, microplastics can be harmful to the environment and animal health.