Microplastics
“Why is there now plastic in the rain, the deep sea, and human cells?”
Root causes (expand to see solutions)
Microplastics are fragments smaller than a grain of rice: secondary microplastics, created when larger plastic breaks down, and primary microplastics, made that small on purpose. Once loose in the world there is no way to collect them back.
What's at stake
Plastic particles lodge in the tissue of fish and the organisms and people who eat them. Chemicals in synthetic clothing worn daily absorb into the body directly through skin.
They have been found in human blood, lungs, and reproductive organs. Studies examining this found under half the sperm count in men with the highest levels in their bodies. Because plastic lasts for centuries, the harm will only accumulate.
The global picture
Worldwide
Medium severity
Microplastics now turn up everywhere scientists look, from Arctic snow and the deepest ocean trenches to rain, tap water, and human blood.UNEP
This problem occurs worldwide, not concentrated in any one region.