9 - Production and release of plastics into the environment
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Plastic production has almost doubled in 20 years globally. Plastic does not exist in its natural state, it is a product derived from petroleum. Since their creation, 79% of plastics have been thrown away (in landfill or in the environment).
1Cause
The manufacture of “conventional” plastic is entirely based on the exploitation of oil. At the start, plastic was “only” a “by-product”.
1Consequence
It's raining plastic. A study carried out in the Pyrenees shows the deposition of 365 plastic micro-particles per m2 per day (published in Nature in 2019)
8 million tonnes: this is the quantity of plastic polluting marine ecosystems each year according to the Ellen MacArthur Foundation. This is the equivalent of one garbage truck being dumped at sea every minute. If nothing is implemented, this number will increase to two per minute by 2030, and to four per minute by 2050, specifies the Foundation
1Other possible cause
1Other possible consequence
According to a study by the University of Newcastle, a human being could ingest around 5 grams of plastic each week, the equivalent of the quantity of microplastics contained in a credit card.