The Effects of Plastic Pollution on the Ocean and Oceanic Life

    Pollution has reached every part of the ocean from the Arctic Circle to the Mariana Trench. It has caused many marine organisms to die as old fishing nets and plastic bags strangle animals like turtles and sharks. Microplastics can even end up in the stomach of organisms as the plastics pass from the bottom of the food chain to the top, and this means that even animals like birds can have microplastics in there bodies. 

    Much of the plastic trash that ends up in the ocean comes from littering on land as these plastics end up in streams and rivers before eventually reaching the ocean. As the plastics break down into microplastics it can be ingested by phytoplankton, which in turn kills them due to suffocation. Since phytoplankton is an important source of food for a variety of organisms this can cause less species to survive causing a domino effect of decreasing populations across the food chain. This is an increasing problem with widespread ramifications, since phytoplankton adsorb 30 to 50 percent of earths carbon emissions. 

    

    

    Microplastics can even be consumed by sea life such as sharks and rays. As the microplastics go up the food chain each organism ends up having these plastics in there bodies, this can even lead to the sea life dying due to an over abundance of plastic in their body. Plastics are not the only factor killing sea life, discarded fishing nets can lead to them suffocating.

 

 

    The pollution that ends up in the ocean can be prevented by just cleaning up after yourself and your community. Organisms that live not just in the ocean, but in water ways such as rivers and lakes are affected by the microplastics. The future of the ocean depends on how we treat our environment and our ecosystems.