Guiding on the boats is about enhancing the whale watching experience for the tourists, providing information on the cetaceans observers, raising awareness of conservation threats facing cetaceans in general and inspiring action to protect whales and dolphins in the Atlantic Ocean.
|
Check out our Conservation Threat handouts.
|
| ||
|
What is plastic pollution?
It’s plastic where it shouldn’t be. It’s in the sea and on the beach and it’s causing harm. We’re using more plastic than ever, it’s durable, cheap to produce and we’re consuming it at staggering rates. Current estimates show that at last 8 million pieces of plastic are entering the oceans every single day.
|
How does it get into the sea?
Two-thirds of it comes straight from land based sources: litter being left on the beach or washed down rivers and drains from litter being dropped in towns and cities. It comes from industry spills, badly managed landfill sites and bins near the coast or by being flushed down the loo. The remainder is lost at sea such as containers going overboard or lost fishing gear.
|
How much plastic pollution is there?
Approximately 51 trillion microscopic pieces of plastic, weighing 269,000 tons. That is about the same as 1345 adult blue whales. And 500 times the number of stars in our galaxy. I know which I would rather see.
|
|
What harm does plastic pollution do to the environment?
For wildlife such as fish, dolphins, seabirds and seals it can be deadly as they become entangled or mistake it for food. Images from the Midway Atoll have illustrated this problem to shocking effect when photographer Chris Jordan captured the remains of albatross, stomachs full of plastic pieces because they accidentally made a meal from our discarded waste. More recently a Cuvier’s beaked whale was found malnourished and dying off the coast of Norway. Experts had to put the animal down as it was in such poor condition and the autopsy showed a terrifying 30 plastic bags and a large amount of plastic packaging with labels in Danish and English in its stomach and intestines, causing blockages and pain.
|
It doesn’t affect me directly though does it?
With 1 in 3 fish caught for human consumption now containing plastic, the question is no longer are we eating plastic but how bad for us is that? In seawater plastic absorbs chemicals like PCB’s and DDT’s which have been linked to endocrine disruption and even some cancers, becoming more powerful as they work their way up the food chain. The beach is where we go to connect with nature and put simply, it’s not the same if it’s covered in plastic. Some of us rely on it being clean for our livelihoods with coastal tourism being worth £5.5 billion to the UK economy. Even if we don’t eat fish, or even go to the beach, all of us without doubt, breathe!
|
Impacts on Marine Life
|
Entanglement
Hundreds of Marine turtles die every year after becoming entangled in rubbish, that’s found on our beaches and in our oceans, including plastic 6 pack holders and discarded fishing lines. Entanglement in our oceans has created a threat to marine life that has only recently become a public issue, with discarded fishing gear, plastic bags and even party balloons choking our marine life.
Mortality from entanglement has increased over the last century with more marine animals and birds suffering from entanglement because of discarded plastic in our oceans. |
Ingestion
Plastic pollution also causes issues for marine life and birds because of ingestion. Many marine animals and birds ingest plastic thinking it is a food source, even birds feed plastic to there chicks thinking it is a reliable food source that will help their young grow. However, plastic ingestion is fatal to marine animals and birds, they are unable to digest the plastic and soon after are unable to eat further and eventually die from starvation. These issues have been present for birds that thrive from our oceans and marine mammals that simply mistake plastic as a food source, the obstructions often puncturing and tearing the stomach lining, leading to starvation and death. This issue effects all marine life and is responsible for the death of millions of sea birds and marine life annually.
|
The Food Chain
Besides posing a physical hazard to the digestive tracts of fish, plastic bits in our oceans can absorb and concentrate organic pollutants such as PCBs and DDT from the surrounding seawater. These pollutants have been known to cause cancer and birth defects and disrupt many of the body's tissues and organs. They are also passed up the food chain when predators, such as humans, eat prey that has been contaminated. This continues from the very bottom of the food chain with tiny organisms absorbing the plastic and its toxins, this is then further passed up the food chain as predators continue to eat already infected organisms and marine life. Finally, revealing that almost 90% of sea life has been infected by plastic pollution, further infecting us as humans due to our consumption of fish and other marine life.
|
|
Habitat Destruction
Plastic Pollution is having a devastating effect on habitats within our oceans, reports have been revealed of Octopuses and coral living and growing within plastic bottles that have been dumped in our oceans. Even though marine life seems to be doing its best to cope with the excessive amount of plastics in our oceans, plastic is destroying habitat in more ways than one. Chemicals from plastic are causing large amounts of coral reefs to bleach, with the eventual death and destruction of large coral reefs around the globe. Without, coral reefs in our oceans the eco-system of our oceans will eventually collapse, causing further death and destruction of the our planets much needed oceans.
|
The Solution...
Individuals- Must stop using plastic products such as water bottles, plastic bags and plastic straws, Replacing them with reusable bottles, reusable bags and metal straws that can now be purchased and carried within arm’s reach. Its also important that we stop using single use plastics and start buying plastic products that can be recycled and reused rather than being dumped into our oceans. Communities- Communities can ensure that local shops, restaurants and cafes use no single use plastics, and replace plastic cutlery with other alternatives. These alternatives include wooden cutlery and metal cutlery that can be reused, also reducing items that are sold in plastic for example fruit. Also, introducing many different recycling schemes and encouraging schools and other community involved individuals to continue to reduce there single use plastics, and recycle what can be reused. |
Tips to reduce plastic pollution
|
And all that delicious oxygen? 70% of it is produced by marine plants, so we need to take care of it!:
|
Instead of using disposable plastics, use alternatives such as cloth, metal, or glass or reusable bottles.
|
Remove single use plastics, such as: plastics, plates, straws, cutlery and cups. Use substitutes such as, metal cutlery. It will save you in the long run.
|
|
Reduce everyday plastics such as sandwich bags and juice cartons by replacing them with a reusable lunch bag/box that includes a thermos.
|
Encourage people to bring their own cups/reusable bottles on the boat instead of using numerous amounts of plastic cups.
|
Recycle. If you must use plastic, try to choose #1 (PETE) or #2 (HDPE), which are the most commonly recycled plastics. Avoid plastic bags and polystyrene foam as both typically have very low recycling rates.
|
|
Support plastic bag bans, polystyrene foam bans and bottle recycling bills.
|
Spread the word. Talk to your family, friends and tourists about why it is important to reduce plastic in our lives and the nasty impacts of plastic pollution.
|
Plastic Banks
|
Founded in 2013, The Plastic Bank pays people to collect plastic waste and take it to recycling markets. Collectors can receive in money or can draw credit which allows them to buy stuff in specific stores, e.g. a cooking stove. After that, the plastic goes to a recycling centre and finally the company sells the material to corporate client who generally pay a premium over the commodity price. This reduces the amount of plastic that is being made and reuses the plastic that is already out there as well as cleaning our oceans.
|
Follow the steps at the Plastic Bank to join the movement and send the plastic you use to the plastic bank, you are one step closer to saving the world and becoming plastic neutral. #REDUCEREUSERECYCLE.
|
|
|
|
Sign the petition here!!
|
Or if you would like to collect signatures at your school, work or community, simply download the form and once completed send to [email protected].
| ||
|
Sources and films of Interest
A plastic ocean
A Whales message from the deep TED Talk How we can keep plastic out of our oceans BBC Drowning in plastic documentary Blue Planet 2 Sea turtle with straw in nostril Sea turtle entangled in ghost net rescued |