Plastics are toxic to marine ecosystems

Recent research by British scientists shows that plastic waste of small size will become a threat to the biodiversity of the marine environment.

According to a research team at Plymouth University and the University of Exeter, England, small plastic particles discharged into the sea, about 5 mm in diameter or smaller, will carry pollutants and chemical additives into the gut of the species. sandworm. When absorbing these plastic particles, sandworms lose their ability to digest other food and lose more energy.

Meanwhile, sandworms are an important source of food for many marine species, the decline in the number and risk of infection when exposed to the toxic chemicals of this species will significantly affect the births. living things in the marine environment.

Waste plastics discharged into the marine environment will harm the marine ecosystem.(Artwork: phys.org)

Over time, many toxic chemicals in small plastic particles will build up in the sandworm body, causing them to lose useful functions with the surrounding ecosystem.

Nature World News quoted Plymouth University's Mark Anthony Browne as saying that the earthworm is also considered to be the earthworm, with the ability to stir sediments such as sand, gravel, mud and provide nutrients to many. other creatures.

Mark Browne, an ecologist from the US-based Center for Ecological Analysis and Synthesis, said that when plastic particles are released into the environment, they will accumulate a large amount of pollutants. capital is banned. This process causes plastic particles to be released as well as causing environmental pollution, and can accumulate other chemicals.

According to BBC, it is estimated that about 150 million tons of plastic waste disappear from the global water flow every year. Plastic waste is discharged to the sea mostly from bags, plastic cans, containers, synthetic fabrics and unused plastic products that drift off the coast.

Scientists say this is the first study to emphasize the dangers of toxic substances caused by plastic particles to marine species.