The body of a stranded sperm whale was discovered on the shores of a Scottish island, last Thursday, as reported by CTV News. The necropsy revealed a huge ball of debris weighing approximately 100 kilograms inside the stomach of the dead whale.
Source: Scottish Marine Animals Strandings Scheme
The debris contained sections of fishing nets, and a shocking amount of plastic waste. One can only imagine how badly this must have compromised the health of the poor creature.
Single-use plastics constitute 40 percent of annual plastic production, as mentioned by Laura Parker in a National Geographic article. These include plastic bags and packaging that are disposable and yet remain in the environment (landfills or bottom of the oceans, and ingested by marine animals) for hundreds of years. According to her, about 8 million tons of plastic waste ends up in the oceans every year.
The horrifying discovery in the body of a single dead animal shows how dangerous human waste is to marine life. Our waste management issues are growing at an alarming rate, causing death among other serious problems. In order to fight these environmental issues, everyone must bear responsibility, and do something positive to change the status quo. A good way to start is to substitute single-use plastic bags with the compostable and biodegradable alternative. These eco-friendly bags can completely break down and provide nutrients to the soil after disposal. A compostable bag may cost us a few cents more than the single-use plastic bag, but the advantages far exceed the harms caused by the plastic waste. Saving a few pennies per bag is not worth risking the health of all of the inhabitants of the planet Earth.
