Microplastics

MICROPLASTICS FACT SHEET

What are Microplastics?

Plastics are all around us, from the clothes we wear and the packaging that contains our food to construction materials in our homes and much more.

Microplastics are small pieces of plastic that are less than 5 millimetres long. Microplastics can come from a variety of sources. They can come from plastic that has broken apart or resin pellets used for plastic manufacturing or in the form of microbeads. They can also be found in the fabric of synthetic clothing.

Microbeads, which are a type of microplastic, are small, plastic beads used in health and beauty products. They are a polyethylene plastic that can be added as exfoliants to some beauty products such as cleansers or toothpaste. Microbeads have been banned in Canada, in the United States, and in several other countries throughout the world.

These plastic items become degraded by heat, UV light, oxidation, mechanical action, and biodegradation by living organisms like bacteria. These processes yield increasingly smaller particles that can eventually be classified as microplastics. Plastic never really goes away, it breaks down into smaller and smaller pieces.

Example of Microplastics; www.ecosuperior.org

Example of Microplastics;
www.ecosuperior.org

Where do microplastics come from?

There are two types of microplastics, primary and secondary. Primary microplastics are found in cosmetics, microfibres from clothing, and other textiles like fishing nets. Secondary microplastics result from the breakdown of larger plastic items like water bottles. Break down is caused by environmental factors such as the sun’s radiation and ocean waves. Most water bottles are just filtered tap water and there are actually only a few brands of water that really come from springs and mountain streams. Only 1 out of 5 plastic bottles are recycled. The rest become litter or get buried somewhere. More than 100 million plastic bottles are used worldwide every day and plastic is listed as the number one threat to our marine ecosystem. According to recent studies, 93% of bottled water around the world and 92% of tap water is contaminated with microplastics.  

How can we get rid of microplastics? 

Standard water treatment facilities cannot remove all traces of microplastics and it depends on the size of the microplastic as well. Carbon block filters can filter contaminants as small as 0.5 microns or micrometres. Since most microplastics are about 2.5 micrometres in size, carbon block filters are an effective option for eliminating microplastics from drinking water. Reverse osmosis filters can filter down to 0.001 micron, so it will remove all known microplastics. Distillation filters produce approximately 99.9% pure distilled water and they do filter 100% of known microplastics.

History of Plastic

The development of plastics started with the use of natural materials that had intrinsic plastic properties such as shellac and chewing gum. The next step involved the chemical modification of natural materials like rubber, nitrocellulose, collagen, and gallate. A key breakthrough came in 1907 when a chemist named Leo Baekeland created Bakelite, which was the first synthetic, mass-produced plastic. Since his invention, many new plastics have been developed.

After World War I, improvements in chemical technology led to an explosion in new forms of plastics with mass production beginning in the 1940s and 1950s. Among the earliest examples in the wave of new polymers were polystyrene (PS) (first produced by BASF) and polyvinyl chloride (PVC) (first created in 1872 but commercially produced in the late 1920s). Since then, plastic has replaced the use of other materials because it is cheaper to produce.

Properties of Plastic

Plastic can be classified by the chemical structure of the polymer’s backbone and side chains; some important groups are acrylics, polyesters, silicones, polyurethanes, and halogenated plastics. Plastics can also be classified by the chemical process used in their synthesis like condensation, polyaddition, and cross-linking. They can also be classified by their physical properties such as hardness, density, tensile strength, resistance to heat and glass transition temperature, and by their chemical properties such as the organic chemistry of the polymer and its resistance and reaction to various chemical products and processes, such as organic solvents, oxidation, and ionizing radiation.

Production of Microplastics

Plastics manufacturing is a major part of the chemical industry. Over the past decade, the rise in plastic use has increased and in 2011 it was estimated that the annual global demand stood at 245 million tonnes and in 2017 it was estimated that factories produced around 400 million tonnes. In Canada, 2,626 establishments are engaged in manufacturing intermediate or final products from plastic resins. Blended into most plastics are additional organic or inorganic compounds that are called additives.

For what is plastic used? Well, just look inside your home. Your television, sound system, cell phone, and vacuum cleaner have plastic in them. If you look in your kitchen, you might have plastic chairs or countertops, plastic linings in your non-stick cooking pans, and plastic plumbing in your water system. Even the food you have is wrapped in plastic. Many toys are made of plastic too. Beyond our home, transportation such as vehicles, ships, trains, and planes have plastic components.

The versatility of plastic materials comes from the ability to mold, laminate, or shape them and to tailor them physically and chemically. Additionally, because many plastics are so durable and do not corrode, they create considerable disposal problems. Disposing of them can be difficult because dangerous gases can be produced when they are incinerated.

What are the Effects of Microplastics?

When microplastics wash down a drain, they are not removed by wastewater treatment and they eventually create problems in the environment.

These tiny particles can easily pass through water filtration systems and end up in the ocean, in the Great Lakes, or in any body of water and pose a threat to aquatic life. Plastic ingredients or toxic chemicals absorbed by plastics may build up over time and remain in the environment. Microplastics in the marine environment can carry organic micropollutants such as nonylphenols (an endocrine disruptor) and secondary pollutants adsorbed from seawater such as polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs). These toxins could potentially be passed into animal tissue and up being consumed by humans.

Some major sources of microplastics include:

  • Agricultural runoff

  • Aquaculture

  • Cruise ships

  • Ocean dumping

  • Stormwater

  • The shipping and fishing industries

  • Urban runoff

  • Waste management

More studies are needed to examine the impacts of microplastics in the environment and what it means for communities, as this is still a fairly new area of study. Nevertheless, plastic waste can already be seen washed up on shores and polluting the environment in large volumes.

Plastic that Was Littered; www.Pxfuel.com

Plastic that Was Littered;
www.Pxfuel.com

Single-use Plastics

What are single-use plastics?

Single-use plastics are goods which are made primarily from fossil-fuel based chemicals (petrochemicals) and are meant to be disposed of right after use. They are used most often for packaging, serviceware like bottles, wrappers, straws, and bags.

Plastic is used in important items such as surgical gloves or straws for people with disabilities. However, these products are only a very small fraction of the single-use plastic items that are manufactured. Single-use plastics are a part of the problem that causes microplastics. Since they are only used once, they end up in the garbage or being littered, they fill landfills and they can end up in the water.

Are single-use plastics bad?

They are, and they are becoming a big problem all over the world. Instead of investing in quality goods that will last and be safe, we often prioritize convenience over durability and consideration of long-term impacts. Our reliance on these plastics means that we are accumulating waste at a staggering rate. Once they end up in the environment and are not properly disposed of, they create waste and can harm the environment. Plastic does not disappear, pieces of plastic just break apart into smaller and smaller pieces and, eventually, they become microplastics.

Exposure to microplastics, as well as the chemicals that are added to plastics during processing, can harm our health. Many chemicals in plastics are known endocrine disruptors.

Marine animals also see the impact of microplastics and plastic waste in their habitats. Whales ingest plastic mistakenly while feeding on prey and they have been found with stomachs full of plastic trash. Another study found plastic in the guts of 90% of the seabirds tested and 100% of the turtles tested. Scientists estimate there will be more plastic than fish in the ocean by 2050.

Plastic Debris Affecting Wildlife; https://commons.wikimedia.org

Plastic Debris Affecting Wildlife;
https://commons.wikimedia.org

How can we limit our waste?

Reducing plastic use and finding alternatives for plastic is the most effective means of avoiding plastic waste. In 2019, there was a rise in the knowledge of single-use plastic and the negative impact it has on the environment. There has been a movement to end single-use plastics such as plastic straws. Limiting plastic bags is another way that plastic waste can be reduced.

Some stores in Canada have removed plastic bags and replaced them with reusable bags or paper bags. Some schools have also banned plastic water bottles and encourage the use of reusable water bottles, some schools have even had water bottle filling stations installed. Many universities, police stations, museums, and other places have water bottle filling stations.

Recycling a higher percentage of the plastic that is used is another way to reduce waste. It has been estimated that around 91% of plastic is not recycled at all. It is a good idea to go to your city’s recycling webpage and find out what can be recycled and places you can go to recycle your items such as cans, bottles, and jugs and cartons that have a plastic lining inside.

The Safe Drinking Water Foundation has educational programs that can supplement the information found in this fact sheet. Operation Water Drop looks at the chemical contaminants that are found in water; it is designed for a science class. Operation Water Flow looks at how water is used, where it comes from and how much it costs; it has lessons that are designed for Social Studies, Math, Biology, Chemistry and Science classes. Operation Water Spirit presents a First Nations perspective of water and the surrounding issues; it is designed for Native Studies or Social Studies classes. Operation Water Health looks at common health issues surrounding drinking water in Canada and around the world and is designed for a Health, Science and Social Studies collaboration. Operation Water Pollution focuses on how water pollution occurs and how it is cleaned up and has been designed for a Science and Social Studies collaboration. To access more information on these and other educational activities, as well as additional fact sheets, visit the Safe Drinking Water Foundation website at www.safewater.org.

Did you know that there are currently hundreds of teachers waiting to use an Operation Water Pollution kit in their classroom? Please help us to send more Operation Water Pollution kits to schools! Please chip in $5 or donate $20 or more and receive an Official Donation Receipt for Income Tax Purposes - or donate $170 to provide an Operation Water Pollution kit for a school.

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