Microplastic pollution is one of the most pervasive emerging environmental issues that we face today. The world’s oceans, freshwaters, soils, and air are increasingly contaminated with tiny plastic fragments, particles, and fibers, raising concerns about the associated environmental and human health impacts.
Microplastics are tiny plastic particles with a length of fewer than five millimeters or about the same as a small seed. They are frequently divided into two categories: primary and secondary microplastics, and they originate from a variety of sources.
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Primary microplastics are particles designed that way for commercial uses such as microbeads in facial scrubs or microfibres in textiles. Secondary microplastics are from the breakdown of larger plastics such as water bottles. The breakdown of this plastic is caused by environmental factors such as exposure to wind or sun. The issue with this is that their breakdown doesn’t just end in microplastics. Instead of breaking down into harmless molecules, they decompose into particles like dust called nanoparticles.
Microplastics are frequently consumed by aquatic animals, including plankton and large marine mammals. Ingestion of tainted seafood and other foods and beverages, as well as inhalation of microplastics in the air, exposes humans to microplastics as well. It is concerning that plastic leakage and the potential for amplified environmental plastic pollution are predicted to increase as plastic production is expected to rise in the coming years. Additionally, microplastics will continue to be produced from the stock of plastic waste that has already escaped into the environment.
Avoiding the production of new plastics altogether whenever possible is the most reliable way to avoid the generation of microplastics and another way of avoiding excessive waste and saving valuable resources is in the form of container deposit fees. Also encouraging the public to leave unwanted deposit return bottles accessible for easy pick up by private waste collectors and not trashing them in a garbage bin can reduce the microplastic crisis.
Primary microplastics are particles designed specifically for commercial applications, such as facial scrub microbeads or textile microfibres. When larger plastics, such as water bottles, degrade, secondary microplastics form. Plastic leakage and the potential for increased environmental plastic pollution are expected to rise in the coming years as plastic production rises. Furthermore, microplastics will be produced from plastic waste that has already escaped into the environment. The most reliable way to avoid the generation of microplastics is to avoid the production of new plastics whenever possible, and container deposit fees are another way to avoid excessive waste and save valuable resources.
By Kamva Majavu
