Persuasive Letter Against Plastic Pollution

Dear Mr. Curbelo,

My name is Kylie Bennett. I believe we need to initiate a proposal to help our ocean environment. Plastic waste in our ocean is a huge problem. Everyday humans just dump tons of garbage into our ocean like the problem is just going to disappear. Well the problem is only growing more and more every time plastic gets made; it can take up to thousands of years for a pile of plastic to decay. The reported average lifespan of a plastic bag may be between 200 to 400 years. Plastic bottles are thought to take about 450 years to fully breakdown. Plastic is everywhere! Think about the grocery bags, food containers, coffee cup lids, drinking bottles, straws for juice, etc. These things are often very convenient but at what price do we pay? Plastic affects not only fish and

There are many ways plastic become a danger to humans. One way being, direct toxicity from plastic; it contains lead, cadmium, and mercury. These toxins can also be found in many fish that humans may ingest. Diethylexyl phthalate (DEHP) may be found in some plastics, it’s a toxic carcinogen. Toxins from these plastics have been found to link to cancers, birth defects, immune system problems, and childhood developmental issues. Scientists believe that plastic waste can even affect fertility in humans, brain development, cell and tissue modeling, and cause chromosomal abnormalities. These abnormalities may be passed down to future generations. Another toxin is BPA or health-bisphenol-A, along with phthalates. It’s known for messing with human hormonal function. Where there are toxins brings great concern to the health of humans. From plastic bottles to food packaging, BPA may be found in each. The way this may enter the body, comes from contaminated drinking water and/or eating a contaminated fish. The polymer chains found in BPA become broken down over