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News >> Knowledge of testing industry >> STOP MICROPLASTICS POLLUTION TO SAVE THE ENVIRONMENT

Stop microplastics pollution to save the environment

With a compact size that is easy to spread, in a short time, microplastics are ubiquitous, causing widespread microplastic pollution, greatly affecting the living environment.

Learn about microplastics

Microplastics are a rather unfamiliar term in Vietnam. Up to now, there is still no dictionary related to Vietnamese that gives an exact definition for this term.

According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) definition, microplastics are understood as very small pieces of plastic less than 5 mm in length, visible to the naked eye and causing negative impacts on the environment. polar to the ocean, aquatic life as well as the environment. Microplastics are often referred to by researchers as microplastics.

Microplastics are derived from plastic wastes released by humans into the environment, accordingly, microplastics can have 3 groups of origin:

Primary (primary) microplastics: Plastics are intentionally designed with very small sizes called microbeads, found in many health and beauty products such as toothpaste, washing powder, cosmetics,... or in air spray technology to clean rust, paint machinery, engines, boat hulls, etc.
Secondary (secondary) microplastics: Very small pieces of plastic produced from the breakdown of larger plastic debris, caused by physical, biological and chemical agents.
Microplastics from other sources: Plastic fragments found in by-products, dust during the wear and tear of primary and secondary microplastics such as microplastics when washing clothes, plastic toys, and rubber microplastics from worn tires…

Impact of microplastics on the environment

With a compact size that is easy to spread, in a short time, microplastics have been ubiquitous, causing widespread microplastic pollution, greatly affecting the living environment.

According to a study by the Vietnam Administration of Seas and Islands, marine species and sea birds often eat plastic and microplastics by mistake for food. when the stomach has no space, they will die because the stomach is full of plastic and microplastics.

Another way, plankton species will eat microplastics, small fish will eat plankton and be contaminated with plastic, large fish will eat small fish and become infected with microplastics, and will eventually die. For these two reasons, in recent years, the number of marine life has decreased significantly and markedly.

In the same study, evidence of the harmful effects of microplastics on marine life was presented, specifically, Dr. Marcus Eriksen at the Algalita Marine Research Foundation, along with his colleague Moore, studied the effects of microplastics on marine life. The action of microplastics on the marine food chain. In the summer of 2008, Eriksen went on a boat trip with a friend from Long Beach to Hawaii. Along the way, Eriksen caught fish that were clinging to the boat and pecked some, including those with bellies full of microplastics. Charles Moore's research on microplastics discovered that a 2.5-inch-long fish contained 84 pieces of microplastics in its belly.

Recently, microplastics have also been found in seafood dishes. Microplastics less than 1 mm in size are found in mussels, oysters and shellfish. More than a quarter of fish in markets in Indonesia and California contain microplastics.

Dantri.com also reported that, in a study published in the journal Science, researchers from Uppsala University, Sweden, said that frequent consumption of microplastics causes fish larvae to show symptoms. Behavioral changes make them grow slowly, leading to a significant increase in mortality, and the number of fish in the adult stage is also decreasing. The scientists found that perch larvae once consumed microplastics tended to prefer plastic to other natural food sources of marine plankton.

Besides the impact on oceans and marine life, a study in the Vietnam Journal of Science (VJS) has shown that microplastics can affect the atmosphere and terrestrial organisms, microplastics are present in rivers, the highest mountains, and the deepest oceans. Research shows that microplastics can be spread in the atmosphere and are an important route in a global spread. Mosquitoes can absorb microplastics while they are still in the toss stage, the microplastics persist in the adult mosquito's body and spread through birds and other insectivorous organisms.

Microplastics are also present in respiratory dust when people breathe in. Because microplastics are over 10 micrometers in diameter, they are often captured by the upper respiratory tract mucus and cilia system and eliminated through sneezing, coughing, nasal sneezes, mucus sputum, etc. If microplastics are smaller in size. , they will go deeper and get stuck in the alveoli, difficult to be eliminated.

Microplastics can also enter the human body through drinking bottled water or eating fish from the ocean contaminated with microplastics.

According to statistics published on the website of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, a new analysis in the UK has detected microplastic pollution in all 10 lakes, rivers and reservoirs sampled. There are more than 1,000 small pieces of plastic per liter of water in the River Tame, Manchester, England. Even relatively remote places like Dochart and Loch Lomond Falls in Scotland contain 2 or 3 pieces of plastic per liter of water. The River Thames in London has about 80 microplastics per liter of water, similar to the Cegin River in North Wales. The Blackwater River in Essex has 15 microplastics. Ullswater has 30 counties and the Llyn Cefni reservoir in Anglesey has 40 counties.

Microplastics are also found underground in limestone aquifers in Illinois, the USA with a frequency of 15 particles per liter of water. This type of groundwater supplies about a quarter of the world's drinking water.

A study by the National University of Singapore found more than 400 types of bacteria on 275 pieces of microplastics collected from local beaches. These include insects that cause gastroenteritis and wound infections in humans, as well as those associated with coral reef bleaching.

According to VNExpress reported on October 29, 2018, of 39 samples of table salt from 21 countries around the world tested by the NGO Greenpeace, only 3 were safe, the rest were contaminated with microplastics. More than 90% of the world's table salt contains microplastics, among these, the salts sold in Asia have the highest concentration of microplastics, and sea salt is the salt that contains the most microplastics, followed by lake salt and sea salt. stone. Greenpeace estimates that if an adult consumes about 10g of salt per day, they will put into their body 2,000 microplastic particles per year.

Reducing microplastic pollution for a cleaner green environment

Until now, although it has been shown that microplastics have an impact on marine organisms that increase their mortality, there is still no official study that can conclude that microplastics affect health. People. However, with microplastic pollution spreading, “microplastics are present throughout the ocean, microplastics are in the seafood we eat, microplastics are in the salt we use every day, even microplastics are in the air we breathe” as it is today, it is essential to join hands to protect the environment and reduce the amount of plastic waste released into the wild. To do that, it is necessary to minimize the use of plastic products; raise awareness about environmental protection; do not litter indiscriminately into the environment; replace plastic products with other environmentally friendly materials… to help future generations live in a clean green environment.

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