While the environmental impact of plastic has been proven, and people are trying to reduce its use in everyday life, the issue of the impact of microplastics on the environment still needs to be fully understood. Microplastics are not large particles of plastic that tend to accumulate in an ecosystem. Consequently, its momentary negative impact on the environment and ecology may not be noticeable at first glance, but it can cause significant harm in the future. Animals, such as fish, can ingest microplastics, and large accumulations can destroy animals’ natural habitats, leading to their extinction. In addition, it may contain potentially toxic chemicals that harm the environment. Therefore, the question of the negative impact of microplastics requires additional research.
The ways in which microplastics enter the environment are very different. However, human activity is the main source of plastic pollution (Booth & Sørensen, 2020). This environmental problem is especially evident in regions with high population density and developed industries. As a result of industrial activity, large arrays of microplastics enter the environment, where they accumulate and accumulate. Minor emissions of this element do not pose a significant threat since its particles are very small. However, on a large industrial scale, microplastics are released in large quantities, negatively affecting the environment and ecology. In addition, microplastic particles can accumulate even in regions with no large factories and factories and where people try to lead an environmentally-friendly way of life (Booth & Sørensen, 2020). This element settles on various surfaces and, therefore, can be transported along with the movement of people.
While a wealth of information and resources is available on the origins of microplastics, little research has been done on its negative impact and how it can be reduced. The need to study these aspects of this topic is due to the need to attract more public attention to plastic pollution and provide people with options to reduce harm. For example, researchers focus on the toxic substances and chemicals in microplastics (Mitrano & Wohlleben, 2020). However, illustrative examples of negative and possible future environmental impacts have been little analyzed. In addition, Mitrano & Wohlleben (2020) propose a microplastic regulation solution at the federal level, which implies policy development and transformation of industrial practices. Since manufacturers building their activities are based on consumer behavior and take into account their needs in making management decisions, it is necessary to convey information to society about the problem of microplastic pollution. Therefore, it is necessary to develop information campaigns and educational programs to protect the environment from this element’s negative impact.
The topic is interesting for research due to a large amount of missing information and the study of the impact of microplastics on the environment. Over the past few years, environmentalists have mainly focused on solving the problem of plastic pollution and searching for materials that can replace plastic in daily use. However, microplastics continue to accumulate in ecosystems due to the activities of industries using them. Therefore, it is necessary to develop and adopt methods for regulating the use of this element for large enterprises.
In personal practices, I try to reduce my negative impact on the environment and promote sustainability. For example, I try not to buy products in plastic packaging and choose other materials, such as paper or glass, whenever possible. Moreover, I would like to do more research on the companies that emit the most microplastics into the environment in order to ignore their products. In addition, I will disseminate the information I have learned through research to the community to have a more massive impact on manufacturers.
References
Booth, A.M., & Sørensen, L. (2020). Microplastic Fate and Impacts in the Environment. In: T. Rocha-Santos, M. Costa, & C. Mouneyrac (Eds.) Handbook of microplastics in the environment (pp. 1-24). Springer.
Mitrano, D. M., & Wohlleben, W. (2020). Microplastic regulation should be more precise to incentivize both innovation and environmental safety. Nature Communications, 11(1), 1-12. Web.