Utilities Tech Outlook Weekly Brief
Be first to read the latest tech news, Industry Leader's Insights, and CIO interviews of medium and large enterprises exclusively from Utilities Tech Outlook
Plastic pollution in oceans has merely contaminated the purity of water, as has the environment. Hence, utilising sustainable alternatives has typically become more of a need than an option.
FREMONT, CA: Plastic pollution, one of the most pressing issues in the current situation, is exacerbating global environmental threats. wherein marine plastics are widely identified as a commonly recognised problem as a result of their use. According to the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), nearly 14 million tonnes of plastic are dumped in oceans every year.
Furthermore, one-time-use plastics are reinstalling carbon footprints around the globe. Generally, plastics take thousands of years to break down, causing harm to the ocean and the life residing in it. This declining impact represents a one- to a five-percentage-point reduction in marine ecosystem service delivery, which typically equates to 500 billion to 2.5 trillion USD in annual losses in the value of benefits derived from these services. However, people in the coastal community, be it a million people or less, highly depend on these varied factors.
Moreover, an established synergy between the environmental economic studies that preceded them in recent times and the emerging toxicological science further elevates the crucial significance of the impact of plastic on both marine ecosystems and human health. However, discussions on the harmful impact of plastics on climate change are yet to reach a formidable level in the global climate talks. Typically made of fossil fuels, plastics generate greenhouse gases throughout their lifecycle. For instance, various researchers predict that nearly 20 per cent of oil consumption and 15 per cent of the global annual carbon budget are anticipated to be produced by 2050.
Typically, a representative of a high carbon footprint and loss of energy resources—dubbed "single-use plastics"—is discarded after brief or one-time use. Yet, varied innovative materials, extracted and made from several other sources, eliminating oil, are replacing an increased segmentation of the plastics market, especially with one-use plastics.
Generally, plastics obtained from natural or biological sources are significantly referred to as bioplastics or biopolymers, whose exponential market growth facilitates meeting the surging demand for plastic substitutes correspondingly. Though biodegradability and human health impact are critical components of its evaluation, one of the hazardous characteristics, carbon footprint, also plays a pilot role in identifying potential plastic substitutes.
Therefore, plastic accumulation in the ocean pollutes its wealth and the lives and health of those who reside there, owing to its inability to break down into compounds. Furthermore, single-use plastics magnify the impacts more vigorously, due to which enforcing the use of bioplastics and biopolymers is crucial for a sustainable future environment.
