What Are The Negative Effects Of Plastic Waste On The Environment

1326 Words3 Pages

Stopping the Many Negative Effects Caused by Plastic Waste.
In daily life, people use a lot of plastic which is a polymeric material that is used in products, such as bottles, trash bags, plastic crockeries, and many more. At any given moment, it is obvious that most things around us are made of plastic including, dishes, carrier bags and twist ties. While using these products, people do not have the slightest idea if these plastic products impact the environment, where they come from, where they are taken away after they throw them, or even the materials used to make these products. The only thing people are generally concerned with is that the plastic bags fulfil their temporary needs. Although plastic can make people’s lives easier, it can …show more content…

People use plastic in everything, such as buying bottles, wearing clothes that made from plastic, and using plastic dishes to eat. Some people throw their trash plastic like bottles in the ocean, which cause negative effects on the environment. This phenomenon will very negatively affect the environment because of the inorganic substances contained in plastic. As indicated by environmental science Richard Thompson, more than 260 species that include fish, invertebrates, turtles, mammals, and seabirds have reportedly ingested plastic debris or come into contact with the material in various ways . This results in either impaired feeding or movement, death, and reduced reproductive capacity. Many animals often confuse plastics for food, and sometimes plastics stuck to the things they eat. For instance, in the North Sea, almost 96% of the dead seabirds die because of eating plastic; this finding has been reported after examining their stomachs filled with different kind of plastics (198). Moreover, each year, many animals die because of getting stuck in plastic nets or ingesting plastic feigning it for food. Almost 100,000 animals die each year (including turtles) because of consuming plastic bags. In addition, when those products are pulled into the sea 's currents, the plastics do not biodegrade, but are broken into smaller pieces which are consumed by marine life. As a result, a study by materials science DeMolam, …show more content…

As indicated by Hopewell, who works at Harvard University solid mechanics. The chemicals made from plastic are very dangerous for the human body, and can lead to serious problems. For example, PET, one of the chemicals that make up plastic, can affect brain development, and PVC can cause cancer. In fact, plastic is a non-biodegradable substance that means it cannot be decomposed naturally very easily. It can stay for a long time until it is completely broken by nature. The direct negative health impact of plastic is the hazardous manufacturing chemicals, such as oil and gas to which humans are exposed to (40). Furthermore, when we drink a hot drink in a cup of plastic it can lead to many diseases, such as cancer because of the chemicals that dissolve in the cup when the drink is hot. In addition, according to Andrews’s article who is a director of graduate programs for civil, construction and environmental engineering, there are decreasing rates of pregnancy and higher rates of miscarriage in plastic factories where women work (n.d). The causes of that are because of radioactive materials and dangerous chemicals that are used to make plastics, and they can accidentally enter workers ‘bodies. For the indirect way, plastic toxicities such as lead, cadmium, and mercury can transfer from the original objects to food (i.e. fish,

More about What Are The Negative Effects Of Plastic Waste On The Environment

Open Document