HONG KONG: Plastic debris in the ocean has been an environmental issue for nearly half a century.A group of Australian scientists who previously analyzed scientific literature on almost 135 seabird species has said eating plastic floating on the surface of the water including bags and bottle caps has become very common among seabirds. The research determined that the highest concentration of plastic in birds where at the southern boundary of the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic Oceans, which was quite surprising for scientists as the region was thought to be relatively clean.
It has been predicted by researchers that by 2050, 99% of marine birds in the world will have fatal waste plastic in their guts. Perhaps by reducing the amount of plastic we purchase, making our own cosmetics and toiletries at home, recycling responsibly, and encouraging others to lower their impact we can see these numbers start to stabilize and even go down, instead of skyrocket.
Researchers have assessed how widespread the threat of plastic is for the world’s seabirds, including albatrosses, shearwaters and penguins, and found the majority of seabird species have plastic in their gut. And worldwide plastic production of plastic doubles about every 11 years.
Now, a new scientific study estimates that up to 90 percent of all living seabird species have some form of plastic in their guts.
In 1960, less than five percent of seabirds had plastic in their stomachs; they put that number at 90 percent today.
The plastic which is consumed by the seabirds enter into oceans from urban rivers and sewers.
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