Plastic waste is a major problem in our oceans, with huge garbage patches floating around. However, Swiss researchers have found that most of the plastic waste in the seas is actually found near coastlines. The University of Bern’s team of scientists has been studying the plastic problem in the oceans for some time. They previously found that around 13 million tons of plastic enter the oceans each year. Now, they have investigated where the vast amounts of plastic waste are located.
According to Victor Onink from the Oeschger Centre for Climate Research, “in all scenarios we calculated, around 80% of floating plastic waste does not travel more than 10 kilometers from the coast five years after it enters the sea.” This means that the majority of plastic is washed back to shore. Recent calculations show that at least one-third of plastic from the world’s oceans eventually ends up back on land. This has serious consequences for the environment, as coastal ecosystems are particularly sensitive to pollution. It also affects tourism, which is the main source of income for many coastal areas.
The Mediterranean is particularly affected by the plastic waste problem for two reasons. To combat ocean pollution, the scientists recommend collecting and recycling plastic waste before it enters the sea. This is much more effective than trying to fish plastic out of the open ocean later on. Onink explains that “the concentration of plastic is relatively low on the sea,” making collection inefficient. Additionally, there is a high proportion of microplastics in the oceans, which cannot be collected by simple filters or nets. Disposing of plastic waste before it enters the sea through rivers would reduce the amount of microplastics in the oceans in the long term.
