Microplastics are everywhere. In the food we eat, the water we drink, and even the dresses we wear. In the oceans fishes swim in, the soil trees grow in, and the air we breathe. All living beings and fragile ecosystems are affected by the growing problem of microplastic pollution. 

Microplastics have uses in the manufacturing industry in the form of nurdles (plastic pellets) and the cosmetic industry as microbeads. Recognizing the threat posed by microbeads on the environment, countries like the US and the UK have banned their production. MPs are also released in the degradation of larger plastics due to natural weathering processes when exposed to the environment. 

Since microplastics are so widely used and are inevitably formed from plastic pollution, pollution of the various spheres of the environment i.e. water, soil, and air is unavoidable. Estimates suggest that 92% of the 5.25 trillion plastic particles on the ocean surface are microplastics. Soil MP pollution is caused by landfilling and improper waste dumping can enter plant systems and affect its bodily processes; These contaminated plants can transfer MPs to humans and animals when their products are ingested. Almost 80 percent of meat and dairy products from farm animals contain microplastics, as revealed in a recent study. Air pollution is caused by various factors, a chief source being car tire and brake wear.

These microplastics can enter living beings including humans through ingestion or inhalation. MPs have shown detrimental effects on the growth, reproduction, and bodily systems of every living being that has been contaminated with them. MPs also serve as vectors for other harmful contaminants. According to a study, people who had tiny plastic particles lodged in a key blood vessel were more likely to experience heart attack, stroke, or death.

When I was researching to write this petition, I saw that many research papers would write in their conclusions that there was a lack of information and studies on microplastics and their effects. Although the potential threat posed by the problem was fairly well known in the scientific community, there was a lack of awareness and effort in the rest of the society. There is a need for the general public to know where and how this problem happens. 

We need to make microplastic pollution the ‘big thing’ it is so that more action is being taken to combat this.

Sign this petition to spread awareness about microplastic pollution and make efforts to prevent it.