There are more than 170 trillion pieces of plastic in the oceans

Global data collected between 1979 and 2019 from nearly 12,000 sampling points in the Atlantic, Pacific, and Indian oceans and the Mediterranean Sea revealed a rapid increase in ocean plastic pollution. The world’s oceans are polluted by a “plastic smog” made up of an estimated 171 trillion plastic particles, according to a new study published in the journal PLOS ONE. CNN reports that the increase is much higher than previously estimated, according to Lisa Erdle, an author of the report. According to Erdle, without urgent policy action, the rate at which plastics enter the oceans could increase by around 2.6 times between now and 2040.

Marcus Eriksen, who led the research team, told the Fast Company that cleaning up and recycling the waste won’t be enough. “The exponential increase in microplastics across the world’s oceans is a stark warning that we must act now at a global scale, stop focusing on cleanup and recycling, and usher in an age of corporate responsibility for the entire life of the things they make. Cleanup is futile if we continue to produce plastic at the current rate. . . . It’s time to address the plastic problem at the source.”

Image Source: eos.org

Last year, the United Nations Environment Assembly approved a resolution to end plastic pollution. According to the researchers, the effectiveness of the resolution depends on the commitments of member states and if it’s focused on “the full life cycle of plastics, from extraction and manufacturing to its end of life.”