The P Word

Plastic. The dreaded word. The convenience that plastic has given us has created a planet full of plastic addicts; it seems we cannot go a second without coming into contact with it. Demand for plastic has seen an astronomical increase in the last 70 years and the subsequent plastic being thrown away into the environment has seemingly copied the same curve.

Figure 1: Plastic pollution in the ocean. Source: https://bit.ly/2EULpyb

Due to our plastic obsession it is thought that 5.25 trillion particles of plastic can be found in our oceans. This is having detrimental impacts on the wildlife and natural environment. Marine animals such as turtles and fish and also bird species often mistake plastic for food. This not only harms the animal directly but as the plastic does not decompose it will have indirect consequences further up the food chain.

The topic of the Anthropocene as a new epoch is highly discussed and there is an ongoing debate as to what defines it. Alongside farming, carbon dioxide emissions and the nuclear bomb, plastic is being considered as a potential indicator. This is due to them being deposited and leaving a distinct layer within sediments which will be able to be identified in the future in records. By this occurring it demonstrates the large impacts of the waste.

Figure 2: A plastic ‘technofossil’ found within sediment. Source: https://bit.ly/2CA9Vb9

However there does seem to be hope. The introduction of the 5p charge on single use plastic bags in the UK resulted in an 86% reduction of their usage from the largest seven supermarkets. With plans to increase this to 10p, include small shops in the charge and ban other plastic single use items such as cotton buds and plastic straws this can only result in further waste reduction.

In this blog series I intend to discuss the reasons why plastic is such an issue, the large scale effects that plastics are having and assess the solutions that are being offered; small and large scale.