Study Suggests Nearly , 26,000 Tons of Covid-Related , Plastic Waste in the Ocean.
A new study has found that plastics from the COVID-19 pandemic weighing approximately 25,900 tons is now polluting the world's oceans.
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Researchers suggest that the waste, which includes masks and gloves, was discarded at a rate countries were unable to keep up with.
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'The Guardian' reports that the study by Nanjing University was published on November 8 in the online journal PNAS.
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The COVID-19 pandemic has led to an increased demand for single-use plastics that intensifies pressure on an already out-of-control global plastic waste problem, Yiming Peng and Peipei Wu, study authors, via 'The Guardian'.
The released plastics can be transported over long distances in the ocean, encounter marine wildlife, and potentially lead to injury or even death, Yiming Peng and Peipei Wu, study authors, via 'The Guardian'.
The released plastics can be transported over long distances in the ocean, encounter marine wildlife, and potentially lead to injury or even death, Yiming Peng and Peipei Wu, study authors, via 'The Guardian'.
According to the study, 46% of the plastic waste originated in Asia, 24% came from Europe and 22% from North and South America.
The study also suggests that approximately 87.4% of the waste was produced in hospitals.
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Most of the plastic is from medical waste generated by hospitals that dwarfs the contribution from personal protection equipment and online-shopping package material, Yiming Peng and Peipei Wu, study authors, via 'The Guardian'.
This poses a long-lasting problem for the ocean environment and is mainly accumulated on beaches and coastal sediments, Yiming Peng and Peipei Wu, study authors, via 'The Guardian'.
This poses a long-lasting problem for the ocean environment and is mainly accumulated on beaches and coastal sediments, Yiming Peng and Peipei Wu, study authors, via 'The Guardian'
