DID YOU KNOW that cigarette f ilters are made of plastic ? Dispose of them as trash
IO N IS VE RY RE AL PL AS TIC PO LL UT
Based on these research findings, it
Forego that cheap disposable Styrofoam™
appears that even minute concentrations
cooler in favor of a reusable one. Shake
of these toxic chemicals in the
the habit of using plastic bags. Did you
water can lead to substantial
know that cigarette filters are made of
concentrations on resident
plastic? Dispose of them as trash,
plastic particles. Furthermore
and do not flick them into the water
the microplastics, which are so
or out the car window and onto the
prominent in the Great Lakes,
ground. Look at the ingredients in
have a greater surface area for
your face washes and toothpastes for
adsorption of these chemicals.
‘polyethylene’ or ‘polypropylene’ as
Once consumed, these chemicals
these are the most common plastics for
desorb from the plastic surface and into
the manufacture of exfoliating microbeads
the ingesting organism, which can have a significant impact on its health (though not necessarily leading immediately to death).
OUR RESPONSE
that make their way through the wastewater treatment process and into our water. In short, be aware of all the plastic that you use in a day and think about ways to reduce it. The best way to keep plastics out of our lakes and waterways is by
What do these findings mean for Great Lakes boaters and
stopping the use of plastic at its source. Moreover, we can also help
fishermen? In simple terms, the plastic pollution of the Great Lakes
by picking up litter we see, whether it’s on the shore or in the water.
may be providing an additional means for chemicals to move into and bioaccumulate up the food web, which is not good news for the sports fishing industry. This fact has not been lost on the residents and government officials from the Great Lakes region.
Those plastic bottles that sit on the side of the road will get run-over and broken into fragments. These small particles will then find their way down the storm drain and into our lakes, breaking into smaller and smaller fragments along the way, but never disappearing. That
Recently the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence Cities Initiative, a bi-national
plastic bag caught in a tree will shred into the plastic films that are
coalition of mayors and other local officials that works actively with
found by the scientists netting plastics in the Great Lakes. And the
federal, state, and provincial governments to advance the protection
list goes on and on.
and restoration of the Great Lakes and the St. Lawrence River, asked regulators and industry for their commitment to take action on removing microplastics from personal care products and cleaning up the microplastics already in the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence. They have gotten a positive response from most responders. While this is an impressive first step, it is important to remember that the plastic found in our waters come from us. We are the problem, which means we are also the solution.
All of the plastic litter found on our streets, trees, and beaches; all of the things lost, dropped, or unintentionally left behind; all of these are the plastic sources that slowly but ever so constantly make their way into the majestic waters that so many of us call home. While the threat of plastic pollution is very real, it’s also very preventable. The first step is awareness, and the next step is action. Let’s all do our part to change the tides of Great Lakes plastic pollution.
Let’s take ownership of the Great Lakes and work collectively to protect them. Plastics won’t be in our waters if we stop them from getting there in the first place. Here are some concrete
Sherri A. Mason, Ph. D., is Associate Professor of Chemistry and
examples of what everyone can do to stop the spread of plastics
Environmental Sciences Program Coordinator at the State University
in the Great Lakes.
of New York-Fredonia.
30 GLB | Mar/A pr 14