Microplastics are small fragments of plastic that are less than 5mm in length. Sources of microplastics include clothing, cosmetics and industrial products and processes. Microplastics enter the environment from these sources and cause pollution. It was estimated, in 2014, that there are 15 to 51 trillion individual pieces of microplastics in the oceans.
Microplastics are polymers of hydrocarbons i.e. carbon and hydrogen atoms bound together. Other chemicals such as PBDEs (polybrominated diphenyl ethers) and TBBPA (tetrabromobisphenol) can also be present in microplastics.
Types
There are two types of microplastics namely Primary and Secondary microplastics.
Primary Microplastics are those pieces of microplastics that are manufactured on purpose. Some sources include cosmetics, facial cleansers, synthetic textiles, air blasting technology, vectors for certain drugs, scrubbers in hand cleansers and facial scrubs.
Secondary Microplastics are those pieces that are formed after the breakdown of larger plastic pieces. This process can occur at sea and on land. We have detected the smallest microplastic with a diameter of 1.6 micrometres.
Effects on the environment
Like all the other plastics, microplastics too are non-biodegradable. Microplastics are found in all different variety of environments. Microplastics are airborne and can make their way into our respiratory system. The health implications of microplastics on the respiratory system are not known yet.
The occurrence of microplastics in the body of organisms is on the rise. Until 2018, a total of 118 species had some amount of microplastics in their body. Common places where microplastics accumulate are the digestive tracts and different tissues of invertebrates. Other animals such as fishes and birds might consume microplastics that can reduce the amount of food they consume and thus the overall energy of the body.
Microplastics on encounter with some organisms may sink to the ocean floor and interfere with the life cycle of sediment-dwellers. Additives present in plastics may leach out after ingestion and can cause damage to the organism.
Humans can ingest microplastics via several different food sources but direct physiological effects are not known yet. Though, there are three potential concerns with microplastics:
Plastics having some direct effect on human physiology.
Microplastics may act as vectors for different pathogens.
Microplastics may form compounds with heavy metals and act as a vector to bring them into the body.
Some proposed solutions to tackle microplastics:
Incinerating plastics to obtain energy. This is known as energy recovery.
Biodegradation of plastics using microorganisms. Once biodegraded, these plastics can then be used as a source of carbon and in the form of energy.
Sewage Treatment Plants can filter microplastics out from the wastewater.
Recycle and reuse of plastics would eventually reduce the number of secondary microplastics.
Research works to reduce microplastics in the environment is accelerating in the past few years. Several countries and corporations are pledging towards reducing their microplastics output and tackle this problem. Many campaigns and awareness programs are also running to educate people about plastics, microplastics and their adverse effects on the environment and how we can contribute to counteract it.
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