Sergio Izquierdo
The amount of plastic found in the oceans is enough to map the way to the Moon, back and forth, twice!
According to research by the international conservation organization 5Gyres, five years ago it was determined that there are more than 269,000 metric tons and 5.25 billion plastic particles in the oceans.
On Tuesday, representatives of Preserve Planet and experts on the subject of marine pollution, showed the impact of these residues when they reach the oceans, at a conference that was held at Veritas University in Zapote.
Luis Diego Marín, a spokesman for Preserve Planet, commented that this organization has maintained a campaign on this issue for 7 years.
The disposable plastic has become a daily waste in and part of our research indicates that more than 1,200 plastic bottles are consumed in Costa Rica every minute, that’s […] more than 666 million plastic bottles a year,”
explained Marín.
The spokesman warned we cannot forget the consumption of plastic bags.
Some of the measures taken include the Legislative Assembly currently discussing a bill that will prohibit giving plastic bags for free.”
Marín said that with small actions the population can collaborate in reducing the impact of this aggravating problem, such as using shopping bags, refillable glass bottles and returnable glass containers for water.
Talking about plastic now is like talking about cigarettes 30 years ago, when everybody smoked and there was no regulation. We expect the same results for plastic bottles in a few years,”
said Marín, who added that researchers have seen the negative effect that this material has on marine fauna.
In addition, the problem also affects the city, especially pipes and sewers during rainy season.