Student Life | Issue 41

MY PLANET
CO-EDITOR LIBBY DAWSON
Our Plastic Oceans
BY EMMA SAWYER
We’ve all been walking along a beach
or river one day and seen bits of
plastic, big, small, and in all sorts of
colours, lying in the sand or pebbles.
Sadly, the amount of plastic in our
oceans is only going to increase
unless we do something about it.
FACT: Experts believe that by 2050,
there will be more plastic than fish in
our oceans, by weight.
This is shocking, but sadly true.
Every minute, the equivalent of a
whole truck full of rubbish enters
the ocean. Most of this plastic comes
from countries living in poverty,
who do not have waste collection
services. We can’t just blame those
countries though, as every country is
responsible. Plastic takes 1000 years
to decompose, but it never really
disappears. Instead it just turns into
microplastics, which will remain in
our oceans forever. But how does
plastic end up in the oceans? Here in
the U.K, littering and using the wrong
bins are the main reasons that plastic
ends up in the ocean. Every time you
throw away something that could be
recycled, the plastic goes to landfill
and can easily be blown away onto
the streets again. The plastic blown
from landfill, alongside littering, can
be taken by the wind and rainwater
and are then carried into our drains;
they can eventually end up in our
oceans.
But how can we help reduce the
amount of plastics going into the
oceans? Reducing our reliance on
single use plastics, such as straws,
plastic bags and bottles and takeaway
containers can have a huge positive
impact on the environment. Luckily,
there are lots of alternatives that we
can use in our everyday lives that
can help save our oceans. These
items include things such as reusable
straws, bags-for-life, and reusable
bottles. Using these items, though
they may seem expensive, will save
you money and the environment.
If everyone started using reusable
water bottles, the 20,000 plastic
bottles produced every second will
decrease, leading to less plastics
going into our oceans every day. Our
actions now can have huge impacts
on our future. We need to act now
before it’s too late.
33 • MARCH MY PLANET 2019 • STUDENT LIFE