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AllanfromWales1 t1_ja2zjlq wrote

Really good news, at least for now. Has anyone done research to identify at what level of contamination with plastics there is a measurable harmful effect on higher lifeforms than copepods?

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Adam-Ridens t1_ja31cgv wrote

There are studies about how nano plastic are able to permeate cells and the effects these particles have on cell structures. Im sure a quick google will put it in your hand.

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AllanfromWales1 t1_ja31t6l wrote

I've read a few, but they don't really address the question of the level of contamination needed to cause measurable harm.

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Adam-Ridens t1_ja33p4g wrote

It's new. They are out there, the fact that plastics are getting so small and are able to inhibit cell functions like rna creation is a whole new level of didn't see that coming. It's gunna to be crazy to see how this impacts evolution. The dna Zipper is going to have a lot more hiccups now. This is my hypothesis from my readings and inferences, and I hope nature can prevail.

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CryoAurora t1_ja3i547 wrote

Also, the chemicals of those plastics leak and degrade into a nasty soup. Toxic enough to cause nerve damage.

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AllanfromWales1 t1_ja3zwt2 wrote

One 100 micron particle per 10 litres of water isn't gonna make a very strong soup.

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Smolenski t1_ja40bbc wrote

I am not knowledge about this, but at what rate does the plastic particles show up in the waters? Wouldn't it become a bad thing at some point? I suppose it's not just gonna be at a standstill or disappear.

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AllanfromWales1 t1_ja42tnn wrote

I just looked it up. Estimated total quantity of plastic produced to date since plastic production started is about 10 billion tonnes. Estimated total weight of seawater in the world is around 1.5 billion billion tonnes. So even if all that plastic was in the seas, there would be 150 million times as much water as plastic. In reality it's only a problem when the amount of plastic particles in a particular location is very much higher than the global average.

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