Plastic: Not Just Choking the Environment But us Too

When Leo Hendrik Baekeland, the Belgian born American invented the first plastic based on a synthetic polymer made from phenol and formaldehyde, he probably hadn't in his wildest of dreams thought that this would one day become a major cause of environmental hazard. Due to its low cost, easy manufacturing, imperviousness to water and its versatility it is used in various products from toothpicks to spacecrafts. This material prevailed over all other traditional materials like stone, wood, bone leather, metal, glass and ceramic. A huge quantity of plastic is used in packaging and also in constructions such as piping, plumbing materials, vinyl floorings, vinyl sidings and many more. Apart from that it is hugely used to make various domestic use materials like containers for storage, gardening pots etc. Plastic is also used in medical field like the introduction of polymer implants and many other medical devices which if not completely but are made at least partially from plastic.
Plastic gained immense popularity and its dominance started from the early 20th century. However, from early on it raised environmental concern because of its extremely slow decomposition rate after been discarded as trash. Different kind of plastic degrade at different times, however the average time for a simple plastic bottle to completely decompose or degrade is at least 450 years. Depending on the make some plastic products can even take up to 1000 years to biodegrade. Worst part is plastic does not degrade to the point where they can get mineralized. Plastic do not mineralize especially in the ocean but breakdown into very tiny particles and acts like magnets in water, attracting toxic substances.
Environmentalist had already warned about the negative effects of plastic and in 1972, the first plastic recycling mill, the first in the world was created in Conshohocken in Pennsylvania, which marked the beginning for all future plastic recycling plants. The process of recycling plastic is not very simple as recycling other materials like paper, glass or metal as it requires greater number of steps, like sorting, extracting dyes, cleaning, removing debris etc.
Studies have shown its adverse effects on not just land but it has impacted the marine ecosystem greatly. These micro particles of plastic have been found in the bodies of marine animals such as fish, molluscs, and turtles and in turn these nano particles reach the bodies of its producers and manufacturers, humans by means of consumption of sea food, thus completing a full circle.
Studies have also proven that due to the invisible nature, micro and nanoplastics can enter the human bodies through use of products like scrubs, lipsticks, mascara, shampoos which contain nanoplastics. Micro plastics have also been found in tap and bottled water. People working in textile and PVC industries unknowingly inhale nanoplastics adversely affecting their health. When these nano particles interact with human blood cells can even led to the death of white and red blood cells.

By: Madhuchanda Saxena
Content:https://www.downtoearth.org.in/news/environment/microplastics-an-invisible-danger-to-human-health-65449