Sharp objects may cut some of the material of the bag and break it. Cons: The sticky texture of silicon may attract dirt and dust at the bottom of a bag, so we’d recommend keeping them in their own pouch. Pros: Silicon straws are lightweight, so they’re easy to throw in a purse or backpack. “Plastic straws and other items smaller than two by two inches, such as plastic utensils, fall through the machinery that sorts our recycling,” says Jonathan Kuhl of the D.C. A study also found that hundreds of species of cetaceans have been negatively impacted by plastic pollution in the past two decades. More than this, researchers believe that plastic plays a role in rising rates of species extinction. To read more about our ingredients and how they are produced, head over to our ingredients page. Now I’m over it but at the time, all last summer basically, when anything negative came in, I felt so upset by it. In the UK we use over 35 million plastic bottles every year! LastSwab provides an eco friendly alternative to the many uses of single use cotton buds without the large environmental footprint. A whales mouth is so large it unknowingly picks up plastic debris (a technique observed in baleen whales).
Between entanglement, ingestion and ecosystem damage, the threat of plastic pollution impacts marine species both large and small. Algae are consumed by Krill, a small crustacean that is the primary food source for many seabirds. Scientists have long known that ocean plastic is consumed because it looks like food. In 2014, a global analysis measured ocean plastic at a quarter of a billion metric tons, much of it suspended in small rice-sized particles. Odour extraction tests confirmed that three common varieties of plastic acquired a “DMS signature” after less than a month in the Ocean. Scientists have also confirmed that the birds most attracted to the DMS odour are the Albatross, Petrels, and Shearwaters three species that are most severely affected by plastic consumption. Seabirds in the hunt for Krill have learned that the sulphur odour will lead them to the feeding grounds. Now scientists have discovered that DMS (dimethyl sulphide) as a strong predictor of plastic consumption and the “keystone info chemical” that drew marine animals to plastic as if it were Krill. How can you reduce your consumption of plastic products? So, if you want to stand up for the world’s marine animals, the best place to start is with your personal plastic consumption.
Whether it’s making different choices in the supermarket or choosing a different place to shop, we can all try and cut down the plastic we buy. However until the ban comes into force in 2018, there will still be products on the shelves, so keep checking those labels before you buy and avoid products containing polyethylene (PE), polypropylene (PP), polyethylene terephthalate (PET), polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA), polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) and nylon. 3. Ask Chris Black: Where Am I Supposed to Keep My Keys? How can we keep Plastic out of our oceans? You can also ask your local pub to stop adding straws to drinks as standard and offer paper straws to those who want one. We’ve all been there – caught out in a cafe or at a train station when we’ve bought a salad or a yogurt but the only cutlery on offer is plastic! Whilst it’s hard to plan for every opportunity, consider carrying a spoon or fork in your straw pannier bag or keeping cutlery in your desk at work. But you can avoid paying those steep contracting bills simply by doing much of the work yourself. Yet the question of why so many species, mistake so much of it for food has never been fully explored.
A new study sheds light on why so many seabirds, fish, whales, and other critters are gobbling up so much marine plastic debris. More than 200 animal species have been documented consuming plastic, including turtles, whales, seal, birds, and fish. A number of studies suggest that the fish and seafood we consume have ingested plastic microbeads. Shockingly, an estimated 98 percent of Albatross studied were found to have ingested some kind of plastic debris. The ingested plastic often puncturing and tearing the stomach lining, leading to starvation and death. Plastic straws are bad news for our oceans. There are some products where it’s difficult to avoid a plastic container (for example washing up liquid or laundry liquid) – the good news is that there are an increasing amount of places where you can refill your old bottles. The good news is that we can ALL do something. Although the early morning sound of a milk float is not as common as it used to be, there are still lots of places in the UK where you can get milk delivered in glass bottles – which are then collected and reused.