Pollution

Around the world, about 18 billion pounds of plastic waste flow into our oceans each year

The average American throws away about 185 pounds annually

We may be ingesting plastic ourselves… we are polluting the fish we eat.

Primary Controversial Issues: Both Sides of the Debate

Banning would reduce waste and protect environment (vs) Banning removes a healthy choice and leads to increased consumption of unhealthy sugary drinks.

Good for your health (vs) other types of beverages have plastic containers that are more harmful than plastic water bottles, and bans don’t necessarily reduce waste.

Save money and public water fountains are convenient and plentiful with (now updated) refillable, filtrated water dispensers. Saving money on coffee if you bring your own container. (vs) bottled water is a practical emergency water supply.

Protect local water supplies and maintain healthy habitats for our animals (vs) restricts consumer’s access to a product they want, and negatively affects small businesses.

Yes, we use plastic for multiple types of products we use every day

Yes, it is convenient for consumers to use plastic bags and buy water bottles regularly

There’s a stigma that is placed on those who care about the environment, as being “tree huggers” or strict “environmentalists.” Why can’t we just be people that care? Why is it wrong to care about our actions affecting our environment?

This shouldn’t just matter to local government, local communities, small and large businesses, grocery stores, animals, environmentalists, and what’s around us…

It should matter to you.

Some of you may think that taking away plastic will not cure the problems we are currently facing and are projected to face in the future. You think it’s a symbolic act of conservation. You say the plastic bag was invented to help consumers for convenience and sanitation.

Yes I know you are comfortable with what you are doing right now when you go grocery shopping, when you buy plastic containers to store leftovers, and when you return the plastic bag full of plastic water bottles you drank the week before. Have you ever wondered where these bags, bottles, and red-sauced containers go when you are done with them? Can you see where these plastic objects are going after you throw them away? Do you think you are unaware of the lack of education you have in realizing your habits are affecting the environment around you? You probably haven’t thought about this because you are comfortable living the way you are. I was too. How do you see a problem with something if it isn’t negatively affecting you?

I don’t blame you for not wanting to change something that isn’t broken, right?

Wrong.

It is affecting you, and I am going to show you how.

The World Bank, a long-term strategic investor in the improvement of municipal solid waste management systems, is contributing to identifying and financing solutions to address the marine plastics issue. If they are not correctly managed- they can be a major contributor to the ocean plastics problem. Since 2000, the World Bank has invested over $4.5 billion to help improve more than 300 solid waste management programs to reduce pollution leakage, including plastics, into our environment. The Bank is also studying the flow of plastics into the ocean through a series of plastics pollution hotspot analyses to prioritize investments and look for quick wins- But it is going to take more than building better solid waste management systems. Everyone needs to be on board to solve this problem and individual actions count.”

We should be mindful that there will be more plastic in the oceans than fish by 2050 if nothing is done, according to the Ellen & MacArthur Foundation.

The negative impacts that plastic is having on the environment and human health is profoundly evident

Respiratory issues are increasing because of air pollution from burning plastic

Littered plastic is clogging drains and causing floods

Unmanaged plastic is contaminating our oceans and waterways

There are actions being taken more so now than ever before: Bans and taxes on various single-use plastics, investments in waste collection, beach clean-ups, and reducing plastic packaging.

This is more of a behavioral debate. You think this is just to tell you to stop buying plastic objects, but it’s really about changing the way you live and start to care about things outside of yourself.

Do we feel like we have more power to mistreat our environment and the animals we are killing and habitats we are destroying?

More of us need to change our habits in order to protect what is around us, especially our environment and animals. To stop being selfish – more cognizant of the way we live.

We are unaware of the serious affects that plastic consumption will one day have on us.

We are a culture that is consumer-driven…constant advertisements encourage us to buy everything, even if it is toxic to us in the long run.

Saying no to Plastic Bags

Estimated 1 million plastic bags are used every minute

A single plastic bag can take 1,000 years to degrade

Over the last 2 decades: more countries and cities are either banning plastic bags (ex. Rwanda & California) or introducing levies and taxes on them (ex. Ireland & Washington D.C.) to discourage people from the plastic option.

Varying degrees of success- you can set an example by bringing your own reusable bags when you consume or purchase anything. (preferably cotton)

Bottle your own water

Humans buy an estimated million plastic bottle per minute and most of this plastic is not recycled

How many did you buy this week? …buy a mug or glass water bottle to refill

Plastic bottles take over 400 years to naturally decompose

Skip plastic straws: Among the top items of marine plastics found around the world

Use your voice to refuse straws and plastic stirrers (notice more companies are switching to wood stirrers (ex. Panera, my job)- Starbucks and McDonalds are in the process of switching. Better alternative: metal and bamboo straws

Avoid plastic cutlery

Tell the vendor to skip the plastic cutlery when ordering take-out

Catering events- use reusable cutlery (plates and cups too)

France became the first country to pass a law that will go into effect by 2020 to ban plastic plates, cups and cutlery. (Using biodegradable products instead)

Make better choices

Use products with less plastic packaging

Move away from the throwaway culture

Avoid cosmetic and personal hygiene products with micro-beads

Micro-beads are a type of microplastic- little dots in your toothpaste and facial scrubs.

New research shows increasing amounts of damage from microbeads to marine life- leading to potential harm to human health- buy clothing without synthetic microfibers- when items are washed the microfibers are released into the water, and lead to possible ingestion by fish and marine wildlife.

Is this a problem that can be completely resolved? Is the challenge of resolving this problem more than just about ways to stop plastic consumption? Is the greater challenge fixing behavioral change? Can behavioral change influence industries to create objects that are environmentally healthier? Do we use the fact that industries are making these products, so we use that as an excuse to buy and use them? Are we just lazy and ignorant to the bigger picture of life outside of ourselves? (how our individualized consumption doesn’t affect anyone or anything else)

Do you believe you can bring about change through your actions? I would like you to ponder what the outcome would be like in 2050 if you were to take action in the smallest ways to impact the bigger picture.

I would like to leave you all with a thought stated beautifully by oceanographer, Sylvia Earle…

“I hope for your help to explore and protect the wild ocean in ways that will restore the health and, in so doing, secure hope for humankind. Health to the ocean means health for us.”

 

Bibliography:

“How This Whale Got Nearly 20 Pounds of Plastic in Its Stomach.” National Geographic, National Geographic Society, 4 June 2018, news.nationalgeographic.com/2018/06/whale-dead-plastic-bags-thailand-animals/

katherine-mangu-ward. “Plastic Bags Are Good for You.” Reason.com, Reason, 1 Sept. 2015, reason.com/archives/2015/09/01/plastic-bags-are-good-for-you

Scientific American Blog

December 2017, Onondaga Community College

Pollution Powerpoint Presentation

 

The following is our outline for the presentation:

Introduction (Write game website on board before beginning)

Andrea—Attention getting device I am going state two quote that will begin to engage the audience—“Water and air, the two essential fluids on which all life depends, have become global garbage cans -Jacques Yves Cousteau, Oceanographer.

• Another woman by the name of Rachel Carson, who is a Marine Biologist, once stated, “it is a curious situation that the sea, from which life first arose, should now be threatened by the activities of one form of that life. But the sea, though changed in a sinister way, will continue to exist: the threat is rather to life itself”

Musette—Ethos:“Something that all of us have in common is that we all love animals! We each have our own animals, or what some would call family members.”

Sam—“Some of you may not know much about the topic we chose to research. After learning more about this information that we would like to share with you, most of our findings surprised us as well! At the conclusion of our speech, you will be educated about some different types of pollution that are affecting marine wildlife”

Joel-—“Four main points that we are going to cover, will be plastic pollution, oil pollution, non-native species, and sewage pollution.”

Andrea-–“Later on before concluding our speech, we have this fun game planned for all of you called Kahoot (point to board) So keep your mouth closed, ears open, and listen up closely!”

• Body (5 minutes to speak for each)

Plastics –Musette

• Marine plastic pollution has impacted at least 267 species worldwide
• This includes 86% of all sea turtle species, 44% of all seabird species and 43% of all marine mammal species.
• The impacts result in death because of  ingestion, starvation, suffocation, infection, drowning, and entanglement of plastic.
• Being impaired to catch food or avoid predators.
• Animals are affected because of:

1. Mistaking plastic as food
2. Becoming entangled in:
3. Plastic bags
4. Fishing nets or lines
5. Plastic packing bands

• Animals being affected by Plastic pollution:

1. Seal turtles
2. Seals & Sea lions
3. Sea birds
4. Fish
5. Whales and dolphins

Examples:

1. Sea turtles
2. As much as 50% of sea turtles are ingesting plastic and dying because of it. A study found that 15 percent of young turtles examined had ingested huge amounts of plastic that their digestive system became blocked.
3. Seals & Sea lions
4. An eight-year study documented 388 sea lions entangled in plastic debris.
5. Plastic packing bands and rubber bands can become so embedded in the animal that it can lead to infection and death.

Oil Spills -Sam

1. Background Info
2. Why do oil spills occur? Oil spills into rivers, bays, and the ocean are most often caused by accidents involving tankers, barges, pipelines, refineries, drilling rigs, and storage facilities.
3. Oil floats on the saltwater of the ocean and almost always floats on the freshwater of rivers and lakes as well. Oil spreads out rapidly across the water surface, forming a thin layer called an oil slick.
4. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Office of Response & Restoration is involved in more than 100 responses to oil spills each year.
5. There have already been 34 oil spills that affect U.S. waters in 2017 alone.
6. Largest Oil Spills (Graphic)
7. This graphic shows the largest oil spills that have affected U.S. Waters since 1969, the most catastrophic event being the 2010 Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill. That event harmed a great number of animal species, including more than 82,000 birds, 6,000 sea turtles, 26,000 marine mammals, and an innumerable amount of fish and shellfish.
8. Animals Most Affected: Sea turtles, fish/shellfish, seabirds, and marine mammals
9. Sea Turtles- They are vulnerable at every stage of their lives, from eggs, to hatchlings, to adults. Sea turtles may suffer from malnutrition because oil can kill huge areas of seagrass, one of the sea turtles’ primary food sources.
10. Through unavoidable ingestion and exposure, the oil can also have negative impacts on the sea turtles’ skin, blood, salt glands, and digestive and immune systems.
11. Fish/Shellfish: Following an oil spill, fish eggs are at high risk because they are immobile and can’t escape the spreading oil. In adult fish and shellfish, oil exposure can lead to reduced growth, enlarged livers, and changes in heart rate and respiration rates. It can also cause fin erosion and reproduction impairments.
12. Seabirds: Gulls, pelicans and other seabirds that frequently land and float on the water can experience deadly hypothermia when oil destroys the insulating quality of their feathers. Many seabirds also ingest oil when they try to clean themselves, which can poison them. And if seabirds don’t die from the exposure to oil, there is evidence to show that their reproductive success is lowered by exposure to even small quantities of oil.
13. Marine Mammals: Oil decreases marine mammal’s ability to insulate from the cold water, causing many of them to die of hypothermia. Mammals can be poisoned from internal exposure to oil through ingestion or inhalation. Lastly, marine mammals can suffer from chemical burns when faced with direct contact, ulcers and internal bleeding from consumption, and poisoning from feeding on contaminated prey.

Non-Native Species –Joel 

1. What does it mean to be considered an invasive species?
2. Successfully introduced to a foreign environment, reproduce, geographically spread, and dominate over native species.
3. Facilitation through climate change
4. Tunicates and Bryozoans
5. Phytoplankton and Zooplankton
6. Over 90 Species of demersal fish
7. Facilitation Through Human Transport
8. Lionfish, Australian Spotted Jellyfish, Zebra Mussels, and Green Porcelain Crab
9. Mode of Transportation: Ships(ballost water), Aquaculture, Canal Construction, and Aquarium Release
10. Regions and Environmental Affects
11. Continental Coasts and Major Seas
12. Plants, Animals, and Ecosystems Destroyed: lack of shelter, foreign diseases, more predators and less food.

Domestic Sewage –Andrea

1. What is domestic sewage?
2. Sewage originating primarily from kitchen, bathroom, and laundry sources.
3. Waste from food preparation dishwashing, garbage-grinding, toilets, baths, showers, and sinks.
4. Oxygen Depletion
5. When sewage decomposes, it uses up oxygen from surrounding waters. If discharged, or concentration is too great, the amount of oxygen available for animals and plants will be insufficient and they may die.
6. Disease
7. Gastrointestinal disorder has been linked to sewage pollution, with viruses implicated as the cause
8. Shellfish strain water through their gills to trap plants/animals for food –if water is contaminated with disease-causing bacteria they could be consumed as food by shellfish which when eaten raw or partially cooked make people sick
9. Certain fish in contaminated waters can accumulate high levels of toxic substances –increases the consumers’ risk of adverse health effects
10. Sewage water carries diseases such as Giardiasis, Amoebic dysentery, and Cholera
11. Solution/Treatment Plan
12. Rebuilding and restoring wetlands because plants and bacteria found in wetlands will do the same thing bacteria in standard treatment plants do
13. Treating human waste water before it pollutes the natural waterways
14. In many countries, there is an ongoing national campaign called “Bag it and bin it, don’t flush it!” Aims to protect rivers and seas by decreasing the number of disposable items flushed down toilets.

Ex. Cu-tips, sanitary towels, condoms

• Kahoot Game with interaction from the class (6 minutes)

1. Conclusion/Reflection Statements
2. Musette—“Im really glad that we came together and picked this topic because I learned a lot from it and a lot about working in groups, and also don’t pollute!”
3. Sam—“Even though doing this project has taught me a lot about oil spills and their effects on marine wildlife, I would say my greatest takeaway is that group work doesn’t have to be awfulbut can actually be a lot of fun if everyone works together.”
4. Joel-—“”
5. Andrea—“Many of us ask ourselves what can I do, as one person? But history shows us that everything good and bad, starts because somebody DOES something, or does NOT do something.

With all of this information that we have given you today, let’s try to change our habits, therefore making a difference even in the smallest way.

Working together as a team will help us achieve a long term goal to protect our marine wildlife.

I know in future assignments I may not have a wonderful group to work with, like this.

However, now I know what I need to improve on and my strengths that I can use to build from, to accomplish being a successful leader and team player.

I would like to leave you all with a thought stated beautifully by oceanographer, Sylvia Earle -I hope for your help to explore and protect the wild ocean in ways that will restore the health and, in so doing, secure hope for humankind. Health to the ocean means health for us.”