[JoeAltmaier]

I don't know how it affects sea-life. Other than the occasional scare-tactic picture of a turtle with a plastic web stuck to it, what is the systemic effect? Sure there's lots of plastic in the ocean; there's lots of sand too. What's really at issue?

[at-fates-hands]

The United Nations Ocean Conference estimated that the oceans might contain more weight in plastics than fish by the year 2050.[33] Some long-lasting plastics end up in the stomachs of marine animals, mature and immature.[6][34][35] The food chain is affected as the plastic attracts seabirds and fish. When marine life consumes plastic allowing it to enter the food chain, this can lead to greater problems when species that have consumed plastic are being eaten by other predators.

Besides the particles' danger to wildlife, on the microscopic level the floating debris can absorb organic pollutants from seawater, including PCBs, DDT, and PAHs.[40] Aside from toxic effects,[41] when ingested, some of these are mistaken by the endocrine system as estradiol, causing hormone disruption in the affected animal.[38] These toxin-containing plastic pieces are also eaten by jellyfish, which are then eaten by fish. Many of these fish are then consumed by humans, resulting in their ingestion of toxic chemicals.[42] While eating their normal sources of food, plastic ingestion can be unavoidable or the animal may mistake the plastic as a food source.[43][44][45][46][47]

Marine plastics also facilitate the spread of invasive species that attach to floating plastic in one region and drift long distances to colonize other ecosystems.[15] Research has shown that this plastic marine debris affects at least 267 species worldwide.[48]

Great Pacific garbage patch: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Pacific_garbage_patch

[eponeponepon]

Plastic fails to degrade - fish eats, breathes or otherwise absorbs plastic - plastic is now in fish - plastic fails to degrade - fish is caught - plastic fails to degrade - fish, along with thousands of other fish, is caught - plastic continues to fail to degrade - fish are processed into ready meals... can you guess where the plastic (which is still failing to degrade, by the by) is going to end up?

[toast0]

> can you guess where the plastic (which is still failing to degrade, by the by) is going to end up?

In people, fails to degrade, in sanitary sewer, fails to degrade, back into the ocean, etc.

[Freestyler_3]

I read the comments, and it felt like he was saying that an entire bag was eaten by a fish and then processed for human food (do we eat fish stomach?)

But actually plastic slowly degrading at the magnitute it is at, make the small particles spread all over. Probably gives people cancer.

[always_good]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Microplastics#Potential_effect...

Plastic breaks down into smaller plastic which becomes embedded in biological tissue.

[artmageddon]

Public health - would you willing ingest fish or other foods if you new how badly it was tainted?

[JoeAltmaier]

Again with the loaded words. And what is the actual health issue? Do we imagine that fish are exposed to more plastic than the average human? Not likely. We already accept plastic into our lives continuously.