Environmental Problem Of Overuse Of Plastic Packaging

Plastic overused in today’s world has been a significant environmental problem for our oceans. Plastics should be used less because it is harmful to the environment and it can cause global warming. To an indiscriminate feeder like the sea turtle, a plastic bag looks like a delicious jellyfish, but plastic is indigestible. It could cause choking, intestinal blockage, and poisoning in animals that eat it. Polyvinyl chloride is the most common source of plastic waste nowadays. When food is preserved in plastic containers, the soluble chemical eventually dissolves in them, causing death from cancer and other skin diseases. This chloride can destroy animal reproduction and respiratory systems. When the chloride is mixed with water, it causes paralysis, along with bone damage and skin irritation.

Plastics are utilized since these are simple and cheap to create and they can last for a while. Tragically these exceptionally valuable qualities make plastic a tremendous pollution issue. Since plastic is cheap, it gets discarded easily and its determination within the environment can do prodigious harm. As much as 35 kg of plastic was discovered in the intestine of one dead cow. The amount of plastic waste in our oceans is steadily growing because plastic does not decompose and takes high-intensity ultra-light to break down. The waste on remote rural beaches is usually from ships, such as fishing equipment used in the fishing industry. This plastic has the potential to impact marine wildlife in two ways: entangling creatures and getting ingested. Plastic can persist in the stomach, disrupting digestion and eventually leading to starvation. Plastic pollution has a negative impact on turtles, and all of the world’s turtle populations are either extinct or threatened for a variety of reasons. Turtles get entangled in fishing nets, and many dead sea turtles have been discovered with plastic bags in their stomachs. Turtles consume floating translucent plastic bags because they mistake them for jellyfish.

Every year, plastic kills millions of animals, including birds, fish, and other aquatic organisms. Plastics are known to have harmed over 700 animals, including those that are endangered. According to National Geographic, “Microplastics have been found in more than 100 aquatic species, including fish, shrimp, and mussels destined for our dinner plates.” Microplastics are tiny bits of plastic that pass through the digestive system and are removed without causing any damage, but these plastics have been shown to obstruct digestive tracts and pierce organs, resulting in starvation and death. Microplastics are particles that result from the breakdown of bigger plastic things, such as water bottles. This breakdown is caused by exposure to natural factors, basically the sun’s radiation and sea waves. According to the Center for Biological Diversity, “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.” Floating plastic garbage will fool sea turtles into thinking it’s food. They will choke, suffer internal injuries, and die- or starve because they think they are full after swallowing plastic. Plastic waste is so prevalent on many beaches that it is affecting their reproduction. Plastic is consumed by hundreds of thousands of seabirds each year. Ingestion of plastic decreases the stomach’s storage volume, resulting in starvation. Plastic debris has also caused injuries and death in the endangered Steller sea lion, with packing bands being the most common entangling product.

Humans are endangered by plastic pollution. Plastic, in the form of macro- or microplastics, enters the atmosphere and contaminates and accumulates in food chains through agricultural soils, terrestrial and aquatic food chains, and the water supply. According to the Center for International Environmental Law, “This environmental plastic can easily leak toxin additives or concentrate toxins already in the environment, making then bioavailable again for direct and indirect human exposure.” When plastic particles decay, new surface areas are at risk, causing chemicals to leak from the particle’s core to the particle’s surface in the atmosphere and the human body. Microplastics entering the human body through direct exposures and ingestion or inhalation will lead to a variety of health impacts. This will cause inflammation, genotoxicity, oxidative stress, apoptosis, and necrosis, which are linked to a variety of negative health outcomes, like cancer, diabetes, stroke, and other diseases. Not only can the toxins in plastic impact the ocean, but they also act as sponges, absorbing other toxins from other sources before they reach the ocean. According to Geology and Human Health, “As these chemicals are ingested by animals in the ocean, this is not good for humans. We as humans ingest contaminated fish and mammals.” There are several cases in which plastic is hazardous to humans. Plastics’ direct toxicity is caused by lead, cadmium, and mercury. These toxins have been discovered in many fish in the ocean, making them very toxic to humans. BPA, also known as health-bisphenol-A, and phthalates are harmful plastics. These toxic chemicals are extremely dangerous to human well-being. BPA is used in a variety of products, including plastic bottles and food processing materials. The polymer chains of BPA break down over time and can reach the human body in a variety of ways, including consuming tainted water and eating fish that has been exposed to the broken down toxins. BPA is a chemical that disrupts human hormonal activity.

In conclusion, plastics should be used less because it is harmful to the environment and it can cause global warming. The overuse of plastic in today’s world has posed a major environmental threat to our oceans. Nowadays, polyvinyl chloride is the most common cause of plastic waste. Plastic does not decompose and must be broken down with high-intensity ultra-light. Plastic consumption reduces the stomach’s storage volume, resulting in starvation. The direct toxicity in plastics is caused by lead, cadmium, and mercury. BPA, also known as health-bisphenol-A, and phthalates are harmful plastics. Plastic pollution is important because plastic waste is the most prevalent problem impacting the marine ecosystem. It also harms ocean health, food safety, and efficiency, human health, coastal tourism, and lead to climate change. This is why plastic use is a problem in our environment for our oceans.