So, there's apparently research coming out now about microplastics being found in people's bloodstreams and the possible negative effects of that and I feel the need to get out ahead of the wave of corporate sponsored "be sure to recycle your bottles!" or "ban glitter!" campaigns and remind everyone: It's fishing nets. It's fishing nets. It is overwhelming fishing nets It always has been fishing nets. Unless regulations are changed, it will continue to be fishing nets. The plastic in the ocean in largely discarded nets from industrial fishing. The microplastics are the result of these nets breaking down. The "trash islands" are also, you guessed it. Mostly fishing nets and other discarded fishing industry equipment. Do not allow them to continue to twist the story. Do not come after disabled people who require single use plastics. Do not come after people using glitter in art projects and makeup. These things make up a negligible amount of the issue compared to corporate waste, specifically in the fishing industry. Do not let them shift the blame to the individual so they can continue to destroy the planet and our bodies without regulation.
Industries are incredibly resistant to taking responsibility for their own waste, to the point where “consumers are responsible for industrial waste” is somehow considered a sensible, ethical, worthy sentence.
It is actually perfectly reasonable to say that “industries are responsible for industrial waste” and “the effects of industry can, should and must be fixed by industry” and “Industry can, should and must be held responsible for its impacts on the commons, such as air, water, oceans and land.”
Microplastics, which are also dangerous for a variety of marine life, do not typically float. As described in the same study used by Seaspiracy, “while small, millimetre-sized pieces (<4.75 mm) count in trillions at the global scale, they only represent a small mass portion (13%) of the total available buoyant material.”
The study leveraged by Seaspiracy explicitly states that it only assessed the buoyant plastic within the Great Pacific Garbage Patch to begin with. Given both the physical properties of microplastics and the scope of the study, it is not surprising that they only found about 8% of the plastic within the Great Pacific Garbage Patch to qualify as “microplastics”.
While it is certainly significant that 46% of the Great Pacific Garbage Patch is made up of fishing ropes alone, it’s important to understand that the Great Pacific Garbage Patch does not provide a particularly accurate depiction of the marine plastic in the entire ocean overall. Large, buoyant fishing gear is particularly likely to occur within the Great Pacific Garbage Patch based on its size and floating capabilities alone, but that does not mean it’s quite as big of a culprit when it comes to plastic pollution in the ocean overall as Seaspiracy implies.
Fishing Gear Makes Up An Estimated 10% Of Ocean Plastic
Instead, many scientists are emphasizing other statistics in response to Seaspiracy, such as one from a 2019 Green Peace analysis which states the following: “An FAO report estimated that 640,000 tonnes of gear is lost or abandoned in the oceans every year, and makes up around 10% of the plastic in the oceans.” (While the 640,000 statistic has been recently de-bunked by an analysis published in the journal Marine Policy, the rough 10% estimate remains the most recent approximation available.)
Now, 10% is still a lot. But where’s the other 90% coming from? According to the FAO report referenced by Green Peace, “land-based sources [are] the predominant cause of marine debris in coastal areas and merchant shipping [are] the key sea-based source of litter.” In other words, around 90% of the marine debris, including plastics, are coming from places other than the commercial fishing industry. While there is a general consensus that most plastic in the ocean likely originates on land, the relative contributions of commercial fishing vessels and merchant ships remain quite uncertain.
According to Seaspiracy, 46% of the Great Pacific Garbage Patch is made up of fishing ropes alone.
