A Review of Plastic Pollution
With growing population of the world, the amount of garbage
that people produce too is increasing drastically. Our lifestyles require
easily disposable products, like water bottles, food packets, but use of these products has led to a huge
amount of plastic pollution around the world. Plastic has the potential to
cause huge harm to the environment in the form of air, water and land
pollution.
It negatively impacts the natural environment and creates
hazards for plants, wildlife and even human population. It may even kill plant
life and posing dangers to local animals. Plastic is a useful material, but it
is also made from toxic compounds which cause illness, and is not
biodegradable.
Causes of Plastic Pollution
The plastic causing the pollution can vary in size from big
to microscopic. The major contributors to this problem today include:
Trash
Plastic is everywhere. Milk cartons, water bottles, food
psckets . Every time one of these item is consumed. It adds to the trash.
Trash dumps and landfills are serious problems because of
which pollutants to enter the ground and affect wildlife and groundwater.
Overuse
Plastic is less expensive. It is widely available and
overused item. It does not decompose easily. It pollutes the land or air if
burned in the open air.
Fishing Nets
Fishing industry has helped contribute to the problem of
plastics pollution in the oceans in several ways. Nets used for large-scale
trawling operations are made of plastic. These nets get broken up or lost, left in the ocean .
This harms marine wildlife.
Disposing of Plastic and Garbage
As plastic lasts long, it is nearly impossible for it to decompose.
Burning plastic is incredibly toxic, and
can lead to harmful atmospheric conditions and deadly illness. Therefore, if it
is in a landfill, it won’t stop releasing pollutants in that area.
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| Plastic Waste in Oceans |
Effects of Plastic Pollution
Few long-term effects of plastic pollution are:
Upsetting the Food Chain
Plastics even affect the world’s tiniest organisms such as
plankton. When these organisms get poisoned due to plastic, it can cause problems
for the larger animals depending on them
for food, each step further along the food chain.
Groundwater Pollution
Groundwater and reservoirs are susceptible to leaking
environmental toxins because of the plastic waste dumped in.
Land Pollution
When plastic is dumped in landfills, it interacts with water
to form harmful chemicals. When these chemicals seep underground, they degrade
the water quality. Also the wind carries and deposits plastic from one place to
another, increasing the land litter. Animals may accidentally eat plastics
might suffocate to death.
Air Pollution
Burning of plastic in the open air, leads to environmental
pollution due to the release of poisonous chemicals.
As we can see from the review that plastics are a serious threat to the environment,
it should be handled carefully. We at Pyrocrat Systems LLP, have a patented technology to convert plastics and tyres into pyrolysis oil. It’s a great
initiative by Mr. Suhas Dixit in waste management.
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