Ocean Plastic Pollution: Killing Marine Life

Plastic pollution is having a devastating impact on marine life. Plastic is durable, taking hundreds, if not thousands, of years to degrade. This means that once plastic enters the ocean, it can travel vast distances, wreaking havoc on marine ecosystems.

The ocean is a vulnerable environment, and plastic waste has no boundaries. Waves and storms can carry plastics to even the most remote regions of the ocean, where they accumulate in large gyres or become embedded in shorelines and coastal ecosystems.

Plastic affects marine species in numerous ways, including entanglement, ingestion, and toxic contamination. The size of the plastic is a major factor, with larger plastics trapping and entangling marine mammals and fish, often leading to starvation, injury, and vulnerability to predators. Smaller plastics, such as microplastics and nanoplastics, are often mistaken for food by seabirds and other marine species, causing suffocation and starvation.

The impact of plastic pollution on marine life is widespread and devastating. It is estimated that more than 100,000 marine mammals die each year due to plastic pollution, with endangered species such as Hawaiian monk seals and Pacific loggerhead sea turtles among the victims. Sea turtles often mistake plastic for food, and research indicates that half of sea turtles worldwide have ingested plastic. Seabirds are also severely affected, with plastic ingestion leading to starvation and suffocation.

The problem of plastic pollution is growing, with the fossil fuel industry planning to increase plastic production. Urgent action is needed to address this crisis and protect marine wildlife and our oceans.

Plastic ingestion can lead to starvation and toxic contamination

Plastic ingestion can have devastating consequences for marine life, leading to starvation and toxic contamination.

The ingestion of plastic by marine animals was first observed in 1966, when researchers found plastic container lids and toys in dead Laysan albatross chicks. Since then, plastic ingestion has been confirmed in over 700 species, including seabirds, fish, turtles, and marine mammals.

Plastic debris in the ocean can be mistaken for food by hungry animals due to its small size, floating ability, bright colours, and resemblance to certain prey. When ingested, plastic can cause internal injuries, intestinal blockages, and a false sense of fullness, leading to starvation.

In addition to starvation, plastic ingestion can also result in toxic contamination. Microplastics, in particular, have the ability to absorb and release toxins, which can accumulate in the fatty tissues of organisms that ingest them. These toxins can then be passed up the food chain, affecting larger marine predators and even humans who consume seafood.

The impact of plastic ingestion on marine life is not yet fully understood, and research is ongoing to determine the full scope of its effects. However, it is clear that plastic ingestion poses a significant threat to the health and survival of marine species, highlighting the urgent need to address the problem of plastic pollution in our oceans.

Plastic entanglement can cause injury and increase vulnerability to predators

Plastic entanglement is a significant threat to marine life, causing injury and increasing vulnerability to predators. Large items of plastic, such as fishing gear, six-pack rings, and plastic bottles, can capture and entangle marine mammals and fish, restricting their movement and making them susceptible to starvation, injury, and predators. Discarded fishing nets can also smother and break coral reefs, hindering their growth.

Entanglement can lead to drowning, especially for smaller marine animals like sea turtles, seals, porpoises, dolphins, and smaller whales, as they may be unable to escape immediately. Larger whales, despite their size, are not immune to the dangers of entanglement. They can suffer from exhaustion and infection, and their inability to avoid vessels increases the risk of vessel strikes.

The impact of plastic entanglement is evident in the western North Atlantic, where humpback whales and right whales frequently get entangled in pot and gill nets, leading to injuries and even mortality. The problem is not limited to whales, as Australian sea lions and New Zealand fur seals in Kangaroo Island, Australia, have also experienced increased entanglement incidents between 1988 and 2002.

Marine birds are also at risk of entanglement, with some species collecting marine litter for nesting material. In Wales, UK, the nests of a northern gannet colony contained an average of 470 grams of plastic per nest, with the majority being synthetic ropes. This entanglement primarily affected fully-grown nestlings, some of whom had their skin grow around the plastic.

The consequences of entanglement are severe, and the chances of survival are poor for animals that cannot free themselves. Entanglement impairs their ability to move, forage, or avoid predators, and they may suffer wounds and infections from the entangling litter.

Microplastics are invisible and easy for wildlife to consume

Microplastics are a serious threat to ocean wildlife. They are invisible to the naked eye, making it easy for wildlife to mistake them for food and consume them. Microplastics can also adsorb toxins, which can then be transferred to the fatty tissues of the organisms that ingest them.

The long-term impacts of microplastics are yet to be determined, but they are already known to cause harm. In one study, all seven species of sea turtle from the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans and the Mediterranean Sea were found to have traces of microplastics in their gut. Another study found that a quarter of fish at markets in California contained plastic in their guts, mostly in the form of plastic microfibers.

Microplastics are a reasonably new discovery, but they are already widespread in the environment. They are found in the deepest parts of the ocean and have even been discovered on uninhabited islands. They are also present in the food we eat, with research indicating that humans are consuming microplastics through seafood.

The impact of microplastics on wildlife is devastating. They can cause internal injuries, block digestive tracts, and lead to starvation as animals feel full from eating plastic. They can also transfer toxins to the fatty tissues of the organisms that ingest them.

The problem of microplastics in the ocean is a pressing issue that requires urgent attention and action.

Plastic debris can smother and break coral reefs

Plastic debris is a serious threat to coral reefs. Discarded fishing nets can smother and break coral reefs, preventing healthy growth. Nets can also get snagged on coral branches, breaking or scratching the coral and leaving big scars on the reef. This can leave the coral vulnerable to disease.

In a 2018 study published in Science, researchers found that plastic increases the likelihood of a coral getting a disease by 20 times. Another study found that plastic debris sits atop almost 92% of the reefs they studied, including some of the most remote and uninhabited ones.

The impact of plastic on coral reefs is not limited to smothering and breaking. Abandoned and derelict vessels can also damage coral reefs by releasing fuel, anti-fouling paints, or other chemicals. These contaminants can damage or kill corals while also releasing nutrients that encourage algae to grow more quickly and outcompete corals for space.

Coral reefs are believed to have the highest biodiversity of any ecosystem on the planet. They are home to a third of all the fish species in the ocean and provide food for millions of people. They are also fragile, which means that plastic debris can have a huge impact on these ecosystems.

Floating plastics can transport invasive species

An example of the efficacy of plastics in transporting coastal organisms across oceans is the 2011 Japan tsunami, which washed 5 million tons of debris offshore. One year later, some of these objects began floating ashore on the west coast of North America and Hawaii. Researchers tracked the arriving tsunami debris for the next six years, collecting over 600 items. They found 289 Japanese marine species living on the debris, thirty of which were known invasive species.

The introduction of non-native species can have extensive ecological and financial ramifications. For instance, the invasive seaweed Rugulopteryx okamurae has a highly competitive capacity to settle on hard substrates, including nets and ropes, constituting a problem for the fishing sector.

The colonisation of plastics by invasive species is particularly worrying at a time when plastics are becoming a more and more common substrate for marine organisms.

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