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    Assignment 4 1

    Uploaded by

    Cyril Cauilan
    Assignment

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    © All Rights Reserved
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    Assignment 4 1

    Uploaded by

    Cyril Cauilan
    19 views2 pages
    Assignment

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    © © All Rights Reserved

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    Assignment

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as docx, pdf, or txt
    19 views2 pages

    Assignment 4 1

    Uploaded by

    Cyril Cauilan
    Assignment

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as docx, pdf, or txt
    of 2

    Even beyond their persistence in ocean and water pollution from

    their production, synthetic polymers are a significant challenge

    on land because they are often disposed of in landfills where

    they will remain for centuries into the future slowly leaking

    toxins into soil as time passes. According to the Clean Air

    Council Organization, Americans alone use an estimated 102.1

    billion plastic bags – a synthetic polymer – each year and less

    than 1 percent of these bags are recycled. Not only do these

    synthetic polymers slowly leach harmful chemicals in the soil,

    their longevity and non-biodegradability means new landfills will

    be a constant need as synthetic polymer use continues and grows

    (King, 2018).

    Microplastics and microplastic are often confused by fish

    and eaten as food. If they survive eating this, both the fish and

    humans are harmed.

    “Fish in the North Pacific ingest 12,000 to 24,000 tons of

    plastic each year, which can cause intestinal injury and death

    and transfers plastic up the food chain to bigger fish, marine

    mammals and human seafood eaters. Plastic is responsible for the

    death of whales, seabirds, sea turtles and fish. It also takes

    over many endangered species habitats in the ocean. The invention

    of synthetic plastic has done wonders for modern civilization.

    However, its convenience comes at a heavy price. The


    environmental impact plastic no longer makes single use plastic a

    viable option for society. Single use plastic is one of the

    largest contributors to pollution, yet one of the easier to

    replace by consumers (Hogan et al, 2019).

    Plastic is terrible for the environment. Countries and

    cities around the world are banning plastic use left, right, and

    Centre, and the call for the end of single use plastic is at an

    all-time high. Some government and organizations are doing their

    part to reduce plastic use and better the environment. According

    to a report from The Guardian, an estimated 8.3 billion tons of

    plastic have been produced since the 1950s- that is equivalent to

    the weight of more than 800,000 Eiffel Tower and only 9 percent

    of it has been recycled. Other countries that have been banned,

    partially banned, or taxed single-use plastic bags include China,

    France, Rowanda, and Italy. According to National Geographic, 73

    percent of all beach litter is plastic. The litter includes

    filters from cigarette butts, bottles, bottles caps, food

    wrappers, grocery bags and polystyrene containers. Less than half

    of the bottles purchased in 2016 were recycled – with just 7

    percent of those collected turned into new bottles, and the rest

    ending up in landfill sites or the ocean (Mwamba, 2018).

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