By 2050 Our Oceans May Hold More Plastic Than Fish

by | Jan 27, 2016 | Conservation, Corals, Science | 0 comments

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The title of this article says it all and it’s very grim, but not unsurprising, news for our oceans. I have written about some of the devastating effects of plastic on our coral reefs. CC Moey reports estimates that nearly a third of all plastic packaging ‘escapes collection systems’. This means that 1/3 ends up in our oceans or in landfills;up to 8 million tons are deposited in our waterways. Plastic can survive for hundreds of years. It is estimated that currently there are 165 million tons of plastic in our oceans, or one garbage truck full of plastic per minute that’s dumped into our oceans. What’s even scarier, by 2050, it is estimated we will be dumping 4 garbage trucks full of plastic in! I don’t know about you, but that is rather horrifying to me. According to weight, by 2050, our oceans will have more plastic than fish. Currently, the ratio of plastic to fish is about 1:5. Currently, only about 5% of all plastics are actually recycled. The solution being proposed is a ‘new plastic economy’ that focuses on more reusable packaging, recycling and compostable plastic solutions. It’s clear that if we don’t make some major changes, our marine life and oceans will be the ones to suffer. More

  • Francis Yupangco

    Francis is a marine biologist with an MBA and over 20 years of professional aquarium experience. Francis is the former Aquatic Development Manager at Hagen USA., makers of Fluval brand aquarium products. He co-stars on Nat Geo WILD's reality TV series Fish Tank Kings where he is the resident "Fish Geek" and was Director of Marketing at Living Color Aquariums. He is an avid explorer having visited over 45 countries and lived in 7. At 17, he was among the youngest aquarists ever hired by the Vancouver Aquarium, where he worked for 7 years. His aquatic biology experience ranges from larval fish rearing to the design, construction and operational management of renowned public aquariums around the world. Francis is currently head of marketing at the world's largest vertically integrated fish farming company.

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