Marine Plastic Pollution Case Study

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Marine Plastic Pollution in Hong Kong and Australia

1. Introduction
It is universally acknowledged that plastic is one of the most common pollutants to environment, but what is the definition of marine plastic pollution? Plastic pollution in marine areas is the accumulation of pollutants including plastic bags, containers and micro debris in the oceans or on the shore side. Plastics can spread in the oceans all over the world due to buoyancy force, thus leading to a global ocean plastic pollution problem at the present (Eriksen et al., 2014). Marine plastic pollution can cause damage to the ocean ecosystem considerably, and will decrease the quality of sea water at the same time. Marine animals ingest those plastic fragments which they cannot …show more content…

And there are some respective solutions for these three aspects. For government, good policies must be implemented to try to mitigate the disastrous impact that plastic exerts on marine life. For company: The beverage industry has the responsibility to decrease and minimize the consumption of plastic. Companies must find new approaches that work in accord with good environmental policies. Cafes and restaurants should also offer reusable bottles and cups instead of disposable ones. For consumers: Consumers should realize that plastic is not ecofriendly. The effect of Raising public awareness and improving education cannot be ignored. Education on excessive use of plastic may be useful to improve a movement to reduce plastic among …show more content…

It causes damage to the ocean ecosystem, and pollutes sea water at the same time. Ingestion of plastic fragments threatens the life of marine animals. Some common causes are existing in Hong Kong and Australia, such as commercial activities and inflows. To solve the problems of marine plastic pollution and mitigate its damage, coordinated actions must be taken among governments companies and consumers. Some solutions are put forward by Hong Kong and Australian governments. Hong Kong government puts charge on plastic bags, and Australian government promotes container deposit system. But both governments still face some challenges during the process of implementing solutions. So there is still a long road ahead to control the marine plastic pollution. More effort and policies are needed to solve this problem

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