Plastic Pollution Facts

Plastic has become an undeniable part of human lives all around. Since its discovery by Alexander Parkes in 1852, it has been one of the most used commodities in the world. Go anywhere, try anything out, and there would be plastic in everything you do. Right from clothes, to food, to technology, every sector needs plastic.

Although it is one of the most essential commodities, there is no denying that using plastic has its own set of disadvantages. It is dangerous for plant, human and animal life. The main issue with plastic arises when you have no use for plastic and you want to dispose it off. Plastics take almost 5 to 6 decades to decompose, and sometimes this period stretches to more than a million years. Let's understand this grave problem by listing facts about plastic pollution.

Almost all of us use plastic bags in our daily life, but not many know that these bags are the prime cause for air, water, and land pollution. Most countries have banned the usage of plastic bags due to the high degree of toxicity they come with. People who have no idea about the level of pollution that these bags create, should definitely read on the harmful effects of plastic bags.

• According to a recent report, the state of California uses almost 19 billion plastic bags every year. To ensure that they are discarded safely, the state spends almost $25 million per year.

• When people don't know what to do with plastic bags, they dump them into the ocean. Plastic bag pollution in marine water bodies is one of the biggest problems faced by people today. Plastic bags do more than just polluting water, they choke wildlife, get stuck to ship propellers and get wrapped around engines. Environmentalists claim that plastic bags are responsible for killing more than 100,000 marine turtles every year.

• The most important thing to know about plastic bags is that they don't decompose and they take up permanent space. They also get transported very easily everywhere just by air, water, and humans.

Plastic is omnipresent, it is everywhere you go. Environmentalists have been encouraging people to stop the use of plastic bags almost in every country but not many people are taking it seriously. For people who don't know how hazardous plastic can be for them and the future generations, here are some plastic pollution facts for their knowledge.

• Plastic bottles take almost 1000 years to decompose. Almost every piece of plastic ever made still exists today.
• An estimated 14 billion pounds of plastic waste is dumped in the ocean every year. Plastic bags and other plastic wastes choke almost 1 million marine animals.

• Plastic recycling is the only way to ensure the safe deposition of plastic but most people don't even know that.
• Americans generate more than 10.5 million tons of plastic waste every year, and they recycle only 2% of it.

• Americans use 2.5 million plastic bottles every hour and each of us creates almost 1,500 lbs of trash every year which can be cleared if recycled.
• The world's annual consumption of plastic bags was 5 million tons in the early 50's and has increased to more than 100 million tons today.

• More than 72 billion gallons of water is used to make those empty plastic bottles. Consumers spend more than $7 billion on bottled water in the US alone.

There are many healthy plastic alternatives like paper bags and bottles which are made of environment friendly products. Why are they not so popular, I don't know.

However, it would be very helpful if more and more people could come and give to make this world a better place with the help of recycling and avoiding plastic bags and wrap. So Join the Revolution and Be a Part of the Solution!