This video is talking about the microbeads found in our toothpaste, facial cleansers and body wash that have exfoliating effects or deep cleansing effects. These products contain microbeads that are made of plastic as plastic is a cheaper material as compared to natural materials. Microplastic is defined by the Joint Group of Experts on the Scientific Aspects of Marine Environmental Protection (GESAMP) as "microparticulate size plastic of range 5mm in diameter of less". Due to these beads being extremely tiny, they are unable to be detected in purifying systems and thus, they would flow together with the treated water back into the seas and oceans. This is a serious problem as these microplastics are very absorbent of substances around them, thus, taking in all the pollutants around them. This means that the microbeads can be many times more polluted than the water around them. Just imagine marine organisms like fishes and sea turtles mistaking them for food and ingesting them... How dire the consequences will be!
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| Products containing microplastics |
A study published reported that about 90 percent of seabirds today have plastic in their bodies (Wilcox, Sebille & Hardesty, 2015) and it exponentially increased since the past few decades from 10 percent in the 1980s. It is expected to reach 99 percent by 2050 if plastic ingestion increases in seabirds (Wilcox et al., 2015). Similarly for other marine creatures like sea turtles and fishes, microplastics accumulates in their guts too and poison them. However, effective waste management can reduce this threat (Wilcox et al., 2015).
- References:
Joint Group of Experts on the Scientific Aspects of Marine Environmental Protection. (2015). Fate and Effects of Microplastics in the Marine Environment: A Global Assessment. GESAMP Reports and Studies, 90 (98). Retrieved from http://www.gesamp.org/data/gesamp/files/media/Publications/Reports_and_studies_90/gallery_2230/object_2500_large.pdf
- Wilcox, C., Sebille, E. V., & Hardesty, B. D. (2015). Threat of plastic pollution to seabirds is global, pervasive, and increasing. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 112(38), 11899. doi:10.1073/pnas.1502108112
Hi Lorraine, your sharing on microplastics is very relevant today as it is widely used in many products today as you have mentioned. A point I can add is that the toxic persistent pollutants often aggregate on the microplastics due to the properties of the microplastics. Hence, the toxic is then accumulated in the marine organisms and passed down the food chain.
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