Plastic pollution is one of the most serious environmental issues our planet faces today. Every year, millions of tonnes of plastic waste end up in the oceans, causing severe harm to marine life and ecosystems.
According to the CSIRO (Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation), around 130,000 tonnes of plastic waste leaks into the Australian marine environment every year.
The Environmental Impact of Plastic Waste on Marine Life
In the worksheet, you will find images of various plastic items commonly found in the ocean. Your task is to identify each item and label it correctly by pasting the appropriate description underneath each picture.
Additionally, read the environmental impact of plastic waste associated with each plastic item to understand its potential threat to marine life.
Plastic Bottles
Plastic bottles, often used for beverages, are frequently discarded improperly and end up in the ocean. According to a study by the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO), Australians use over 13 billion plastic bottles each year, but only 36% are recycled.
Marine animals can mistake these bottles for food, leading to ingestion that can cause internal injuries, blockages, and death. Over time, these bottles break down into smaller microplastics that further contaminate the water and marine food chain.
Plastic Bags
Plastic bags are commonly used for groceries and other shopping needs, due to their lightweight nature, but they pose significant environmental risks.
Once discarded in landfills, plastic bags can easily be carried by wind into the ocean where marine life, especially turtles, mistake them for jellyfish, a part of their diet. Ingesting plastic bags can block their digestive systems, leading to fatal consequences. Moreover, these bags can entangle marine animals, restricting their movement and ability to feed.
Plastic Cutlery
Disposable plastic cutlery often ends up in water bodies like oceans and seas through improper disposal. Over time, these items degrade into tiny particles known as microplastics, which marine creatures like fish, seabirds, and turtles often mistake for food.
Ingestion of these microplastics can cause severe harm to their digestive systems and even result in starvation. This pollution disrupts the marine food chain, potentially impacting species all the way to humans who rely on seafood as a food source.
Plastic Packaging
Australians throw away around 1.9 million tonnes of packaging each year – enough to fill the Melbourne Cricket Ground nine times over. According to the Australian Marine Debris Initiative (AMDI), plastic packaging items are among the most commonly found types of marine debris along Australia’s coastlines.
Plastic packaging in the marine environment can leach harmful chemicals and persist for decades, posing ongoing threats to marine biodiversity.
In response to these challenges, APCO (Australian Packaging Covenant Organisation) created the 2025 National Packaging Targets to promote a sustainable approach to packaging. These targets aim to ensure that all packaging is either reusable, recyclable, or compostable by the year 2025. This initiative seeks not only to reduce the volume of packaging waste entering landfills and oceans but also to minimise the ecological footprint associated with packaging materials.
Plastic Toys
Australians spend more than $1 billion annually on new toys, with research from eco-retailer Flora & Fauna revealing that 26.8 million toys end up discarded.
These toys, often made of plastic and commonly small and brightly coloured, eventually break down into micro fragments. This poses a serious threat to marine life, as these fragments can be mistaken for food by sea creatures, leading to severe consequences for their health and survival.
Plastic Microbeads
Plastic microbeads, commonly found in exfoliating scrubs, toothpaste, and other personal care items, contribute significantly to marine plastic waste pollution.
These tiny beads can absorb and concentrate hazardous chemicals from their surroundings. When marine organisms consume these beads, they also consume the hazardous compounds, posing a risk to larger marine predators and potentially infiltrating human food chains.
In several states, the Australian government has implemented a ban on the production, sale, and distribution of personal care products containing plastic microbeads. This step was intended to reduce the amount of plastic waste pollution entering marine environments from these products.
Despite these regulatory measures, microplastic pollution remains a persistent concern in both Australian waters and globally.
