Une nouvelle étude menée par des chercheurs de l’Université de Géorgie aux États-Unis quantifie pour la première fois la quantité de déchets plastiques déversés dans les océans. Loin d’être trivial, c’est une source importante de pollution pour l’environnement et la faune marine qui pourrait causer l’étouffement de plus de 250 espèces!
UN PHÉNOMÈNE TRÈS INQUIÉTANT
CINQ SACS DE DÉCHETS REMPLIS TOUS LES 30 CENTIMÈTRES
UN PROBLÈME DE TRAITEMENT DES DÉCHETS
D’ICI 2050, LES OCÉANS CONTIENDRONT PLUS DE PLASTIQUE QUE DE POISSON
Une étude publiée par le World Economic Forum à Davos met en évidence la surconsommation de matières plastiques. Et pour une bonne raison: d’ici 2050, il y aura plus de plastique, par poids, que les poissons dans les océans du globe.
The Davos study, entitled ” The New Plastics Economy, Rethinking the Future of Plastics “, examines the future of this material, which is widely used throughout the world Is not without consequences.
The report, based on interviews with 180 experts and the analysis of 200 reports, estimates that by 2050 the amount of plastic produced globally will be multiplied by three times to 1.124 million tonnes . Meanwhile, the “plastic economy” will swallow 15% of the annual global carbon budget (the budget to meet the target of a 2% decrease in global warming), compared to 1% today.
THE SCOURGE OF PLASTIC PACKAGING
The use of plastic, a practical and inexpensive material, has multiplied by 20 over the last fifty years. And a quarter of this production concerns only packaging.
But only 14% of plastic packaging is collected for recycling. An extremely low rate compared to other materials: 58% for paper and up to 90% for iron. Worse, almost a third of all plastic packaging produced in the world land in a garbage can and end up in the wild.
For the Davos Forum, the only way to avoid a disaster is to considerably improve the economy of recycling. To this end, citizens must be encouraged not only to collect and sort plastic, but also to give priority to recyclable packaging. The other priority is to convince countries to improve their waste collection system. In France, the use of single-use plastic bags should be banned in March.
A DISASTER FOR THE OCEANS
In March 2012, a sperm whale washed up on an Andalusian beach. In his stomach, he found 17 kilos of plastic made up of 59 different pieces, including: 30 square meters of plastic film from the neighboring industry, pieces of garden hoses, small flower pots, plastic bags, Hanger and small pieces of mattress The causes of death would be a perforation of the stomach and paradoxically starvation.
Plastic waste in the oceans is an increasingly serious threat and I want to give you an overview.
PLASTIC AND ITS USE
Nowadays plastic is omnipresent in the industry, conditioning of the building industry, automotive construction, medicine, leisure, high-tech, agriculture etc. The public’s enthusiasm is explained Especially by its properties such as low weight, acid resistance, and its flexibility. The origin of the word “plastic” comes from the Greek “plastikos” (ready to form) and “plastos” (well-formed). In addition, plastic production is cheap.
Synthetic plastics are derived from petroleum, natural gas and coal. They consist of molecular chains, called polymers. Refined petroleum (Naphta) is the most common raw material. The chemical connections are very stable and not biodegradable. The most common plastics are polyethylene, polypropylene, PVC, polystyrenes, PET and polyethers. Manufactured from liquid hydrocarbons, they account for about 80% of European plastic production. To this raw material will be added various additives (plasticizers, stabilizers, dyes, filling material, reinforcements, flame retardants or antistatic agents) to give it the desired properties. All of these additives are hazardous to health as they spread over time in the environment.
The growth of the plastic market dates back to 1950. At that time, about 1 million tons of plastic were produced in the world. Today, the figure is about 250 million tonnes each year. In 2005, this represented an annual consumption per inhabitant of 100 kg. In 2015, it will be 140 kg / year / inhabitant. The packaging is the first plastic thrown into the trash and accounts for 38% of the waste. As long as the plastic is not removed or recycled completely, it will pollute the environment because it is not biodegradable. In Europe, with properly structured collection, only ¼ of the plastics are recycled.
Plastic waste discarded nonchalantly is found in rivers and transported to the oceans. According to some estimates, 800 million tons of this waste enters the oceans and half would be plastics. Under the influence of waves, wind and UV rays, the waste decomposes in the sea into tiny fragments and is transported over very great distances with marine currents. That’s how it’s found in the Arctic and the Antarctic!
These marine currents convey this waste in subtropical convergence zones (Gyres in English), which causes huge accumulations! The seventh continent or “Great Pacific Garbage Pach” is an area located in the North Pacific with a high concentration of floating plastic waste. However, its name is misleading because it is floating plastics under the surface (cloud type) in the form of very small particles. In the middle of the North Pacific, some Hawaiian beaches are covered in rubbish and “Kamilo beach” on the southwestern tip of “Big Island” dubbed “Plastic beach” there is more waste than sand.
CONSEQUENCES OF POLLUTION BY PLASTICS
Other marine animals as well as humans are victims of this pollution. Tiny particles dissolved in water are toxic. This is called polyphenol, bisphenol A (BPA), styrenic monomers or plasticizers (phthalates). The latter act on hormones and therefore on hormonal systems that are very sensitive. Absorbed by these different animals, toxins can spread in the food chain, accumulate and are ingested by humans. The dangers of these plasticizers are not clearly defined but they are suspected of negative impacts on the growth of children, infertility and cancer diseases in men.
Another danger of these particles is that they contain toxic agents such as DDT, DDE, PCB or other POPs (persistent organic pollutants) that also accumulate in the food chain. This is why whales are treated as “hazardous waste” in the event of stranding.
WHAT DO PEOPLE DO?
Les gens doivent se sentir responsables et nous devons nettoyer les océans. Il est très difficile de mettre en œuvre des actions de nettoyage à grande échelle car les mers et les océans sont considérés comme des biens publics. Donc, personne ne se sent responsable. Cela entraînerait des coûts élevés et une infrastructure appropriée, tout en sensibilisant à cette pollution de l’océan, qui est trop limitée par de nombreux pays. Ils n’ont toujours pas appliqué l’accord pour l’élimination des îles en plastique. Cependant, il est urgent et nécessaire de trouver une solution afin qu’aucun nouveau gaspillage plastique n’arrive à la mer et qu’il soit retiré de l’eau:
These last two points are recorded in the international agreement MARPOL dating from the 1980s. It is clearly written that the vessels have the prohibition to eliminate their waste at sea. It is a global agreement ratified by 122 countries. Unfortunately, the waste situation has deteriorated. The main reason is a lack of correct control by the signatory countries and that, in addition, only 20% of the waste in the oceans comes from the ships 80% come from the continents. Consequently, even if MARPOL had been successful, too many wastes arrive in the seas from the land.
Le nettoyage des côtes et des côtes est également très important. Il est frustrant de trouver de nouveaux déchets, mais chaque action compte et peut sauver la vie des animaux marins. La plus grande organisation pour ce type d’action est la CCI (International Coastal Cleanup), qui coordonne avec Ocean Conservancy. Depuis 1986, ils ont organisé des actions régulières de nettoyage avec l’aide de nombreux bénévoles dans 132 pays.
Nous, les bénévoles de l’entreprise, avons été curieux de savoir ce que nous avons trouvé sur les plages de Tarifa. En seulement deux heures et à moins de 200 mètres, nous avons rempli 4 gros sacs à ordures! Vous pouvez tout trouver: bouteilles, baignoire, chaise de plage, grilles usées, chaussures, palangres de pêche avec des crochets, etc. Voici un aperçu de cette collection:
Between 10 and 30% of by-catches in fishing nets are plastic waste. Unfortunately, the space on board is often too small to carry waste ashore and there are no facilities in harbors for collection. In addition, treatment is usually chargeable! As a result, the waste is discharged overboard.
In Germany, NABU launched a project in 2011 “Fishing for Litter” where free waste treatment is made available in the ports. The environmental organization KIMO has since 2003 arranged a free infrastructure for the treatment of refuse in several European ports. A student named Boyan Slat, aged 19, is currently working on a project to clean the oceans. Its goal is to eliminate waste with floating screens placed at strategic points on the oceans to avoid mistakenly catching organic materials or species.
Then it would recycle the plastic. There are already solutions but they do not get much support so far. We should be aware of these dangers and behave differently: By simple gestures by reducing our plastic consumption find a reusable bag Use a reusable food box to take away its meals Cook with fresh ingredients and buy as few products as possible with a lot Packing .
FIGHTING AGAINST PLASTIC POLLUTION (PETITION)
For a 50% reduction in waste by 2020We call for a 50% reduction target for marine litter by 2020! Only this objective can significantly reduce the presence of these wastes and their impact on the environment . Its stake is imperative because it is about protecting this priceless resource that is our blue planet!
Les États eux-mêmes se sont engagés à assurer le bon état environnemental du milieu marin européen d’ici 2020 et cinq ans avant cette date limite, il reste beaucoup à faire.
Signez notre pétition pour nous aider à faire pression sur les institutions et les États membres de l’Union européenne afin d’obtenir des mesures concrètes et des résultats contre le fléau des déchets dans nos mers et nos océans.