HOW DOES IT ENTER THE OCEAN?

How does 8 million tonnes of plastic enter the ocean, without many even realising?

There are various ways in which plastic can enter the ocean, like accidents at sea: one fifth of marine litter is in the sea- like fishing gear. Or, as plastic is hard to dispose of, it gets sent to landfills, here it is left to decompose/goes into the ocean. Only 9% of plastic is recycled, because when it is burnt, t releases carbon monoxide.

60% of the ocean's plastic comes from China, Indonesia, Philippines, Vietnam and Thailand (more than the rest of the world combined) -for these are major producers. 7% of plastic on the beaches comes from our toilets, as 1/3 of us flush the wrong things down them. It could also come down the drain (there are microplastics in toothpaste, cosmetics and shampoo/shower gel). So we are also to blame.

Cigarette butts, Plastic bags, fishing gear, food packaging & beverage containers are the most common in the ocean, which everyone has dropped as litter in their life.Major rivers around the world carry an estimated 1-2 million tons of plastic into the sea every year.

Up to 100,000 rubbish trucks worth of plastic come from rivers. A rubbish truck worth enters the oceans every second. Industrial leakage pollutes 3/4 of UK beaches each year. 1/2 of the plastic produced is used only once!