While countries all over the globe are starting to realise the devastating impact plastic is having on the world and on marine life, civilians, activists, and politicians have all been taking steps to reduce their carbon footprint by reducing their reliance on single-use plastics. This recent discovery has definitely shown the dire need to completely do away with plastic.
According to BBC News, an American deep-sea explorer named Victor Vescovo recently broke the world record for the deepest submarine dive when he dove into the Pacific Ocean’s Mariana Trench, which itself is the deepest part of the ocean known to mankind.
Source: CNN
Source: CNN
On 1st May, Vescovo dove 11 kilometres into the ocean and spent a total of four hours exploring the sea bed. The deep-sea explorer and his team also believe they discovered a new species of prawn-like crustaceans as well as brightly-coloured rock formations that could have been made by microbes.
However, during his four-hour excursion, Vescovo also found a plastic bag and sweet wrappers at the very bottom of the ocean.
In light of this chilling discovery, the explorer and his team decided to test some of the creatures found in the area to see if they contained microplastics.
Microplastic is a newly discovered pollutant. They are microscopic plastic particles present in the air and water, and can even be small enough to enter the bodies of animals, marine life, and humans, subsequently affecting our health.
Source: Stuff
Countries worldwide have been advocating against the reliance on single-use plastics to help curb these issues, and the same can be said for Malaysia as well. Energy, Science, Technology, Environment and Climate Change Minister Yeo Bee Yin recently announced last year that our country would work towards being a zero single-use plastic nation by the year 2030.
While this discovery is indeed a sobering look at the state of our natural environment, we are glad that there are some steps being taken towards lessening our impact on the environment. What do you think of this latest discovery? Let us know in the comments section.
