Estimates show as many as 170 trillion plastic particles floating in our world’s oceans.

The global increase in plastic production is resulting in a critical increase in plastic pollution.

Asia is the largest producer of waste, accounting for as much as 80% of global production.

“Science journalist Simon of Wired , is particularly concerned about the tendency of plastics to become microplastics. (Microplastics are usually defined as pieces less than five millimeters in diameter.) This process happens all the time in many different ways. Plastic bags drift into the ocean, where they are littered by waves and bombarded by UV radiation and disintegrate. Tires today contain a wide variety of plastics; as they roll, they abrade, sending clouds of particles spinning into the air. Clothes made of plastic, which now make up the majority of items sold, are constantly losing fibers, just as dogs lose their hair.”

There is also the danger posed by microplastics themselves – microfibers can be drawn deep into the lungs.

Saving the world from plastic will require eliminating many harmful products in the first place.

Sources:
The New Yorker

Plos One