How bad is the ocean's plastic problem? What sea birds tell us.

[marmar]

from Christian Science Monitor:


How bad is the ocean's plastic problem? What sea birds tell us.
A new study has found that majority of seabird species have plastic in their gut.

By Beatrice Gitau, Staff SEPTEMBER 1, 2015




Nearly 90 percent of all seabirds alive today have plastic in their stomachs – including remnants of bags, bottle caps, and plastic fibers from synthetic clothes, which have washed out into the ocean from urban rivers, sewers and waste deposits – scientists estimate.

The researchers from Australia's the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation and Imperial College London looked at published studies since the early 1960s, and found that the number of seabirds – including albatrosses, shearwaters, and penguins – that have ingested plastic has increased significantly since 1980.

In 1960, less than five percent of seabirds had plastic in their stomachs; they put that number at 90 percent today.

"We predict, using historical observations, that 90 percent of individual seabirds have eaten plastic. This is a huge amount and really points to the ubiquity of plastic pollution,” said Dr. Chris Wilcox, study leader and senior research scientist at CSIRO Oceans and Atmosphere in a news release. ...................(more)

http://www.csmonitor.com/Environment/2015/0901/How-bad-is-the-ocean-s-plastic-problem-What-sea-birds-tell-us

[daleanime]

1. kick, kick, kick....

[malaise]

2. Many many humans are nasty despicable thoughtless scumbags

It's that simple

[yeoman6987]

3. In the 60's less then 5 percent to 90 percent

That's a huge jump. Perhaps going back to using containers and other materials we used in the 60's is our best option. We thought plastic was a winner but clearly we were wrong.

[mopinko]

4. i'm not arguing that it is a problem, but this study

doesnt convince me. i looked at the article and the press release and nowhere in there is there a mention of necropsies or any other facts.
seems to be just a prediction based on amounts of plastic found on beaches.

birds can and do ingest undigestible stuff, but they also can and do pass it. dont think exposure necessarily = death by plastic.

again, not arguing with the idea of controlling plastic waste. just sayin this is a projection w no real numbers behind it, imho.

[xynthee]

6. I don't know about that.

Midway Atoll, more than 2000 miles from the nearest continent, has a horrible plastic pollution problem. The beaches are littered with bird carcasses stuffed with bottle caps and other plastic junk. I've never been able to forget these photos. Check out the rest at

http://beautifuldecay.com/2012/10/26/chris-jordans-photographs-of-bird-carcasses-with-stomachs-full-of-plastic/

[mopinko]

7. like i said, i dont question that it is a problem.

but you at least have to count up all the dead birds and compare them to the known populations before you can come up with any kind of percentage. and you would need to study that over time to come up with a trend.
i dont see any evidence in this of such facts.

[Wilms]

5. ^