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Microplastics on a lantana plant at a botanical garden photo courtesy of Holly Elmore Images |
Over time, microplastics, defined as less than or equal to 5 mm, disintegrate into nanoplastics; additionally nanoplastics may be directly released into the air, waterways, and soils. As micro and nanoplastics are prevalent across the globe, even in the most remote lands and the exceptional depths of the oceans, concerns about the health implications to human and all life on earth is escalating.
Health Implications
Per the Mayo Clinic March 2024 article, What’s lurking in your body? Mayo probes health risks of tiny plastic particles, a landmark study just published in the New England Journal of Medicine links microplastics and nanoplastics found in plaques of human-blood vessels to a potential increased risk of heart attack, stroke or death. Chemical additives to plastics that enhance flexibility and durability are of particular concern. As it provides digestion and blood-detoxification functions for the body, the liver is at high health risk from micro and nanoplastic infiltration.
The February 2024 Environmental Health News post Microplastics and contaminants found in breast milk: a cause for concern? summarizes a recent Washington Post article by Jillian Pretzel as follows:
- Research has identified microplastics, pesticides, and flame-retardant chemicals in human-breast milk.
- Experts stress breast milk's health benefits for both the mother and child, despite potential risks from contaminants.
- Measures like opting for organic foods and avoiding plastic can help minimize exposure to these pollutants.
Key quote:
"It's definitely concerning when we find chemicals in breast milk that are known to affect child development." Erika Schreder, science director for Toxic-Free Future.
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Microplastics in wild-caught fish Photo courtesy of the 5 Gyres |
Researchers have used molecular modelling methods to investigate the movement of nano-sized plastics in membrane structures. The results indicate that for some microplastics, passive transport through the cell membrane may be a significant gateway into the cell.
As nanoplastics may segue through cell walls, it is probable that plant-based food will soon, if not already, contain plastic pollution.
With the prolific micro and nanoplastic pollution contaminating the Earth, health implications for all life on earth is a major concern.
Plastics in the Soils
Below is an excerpt from the RiA article, What We Matters:
With the common use of time-released fertilizers and pesticides in conventional farming came an unintended consequence: the flooding of micro and nanoplastics into the soils from the time-release capsules. ... and what goes into the soils eventually ends up in the aquifers and waterways.
In May 2022, the Center for International Environmental Law published a report on the plastics in the soils, Sowing a Plastic Planet: How Microplastics in Agrochemicals Are Affecting Our Soils, Our Food, and Our Future. From the astonishing report:Plastics are everywhere in agriculture, from greenhouse films and landscaping fabrics to crop coverings and product packaging. Many of these uses provide pathways for plastic contamination. But the application of plastic-coated agrochemicals to soils and crops directly introduces microplastic into the environment and potentially into the food supply. It also compounds the health and environmental hazards posed by agrochemicals themselves.
One of the least known and most concerning sources of microplastic pollution is their deliberate addition to synthetic fertilizers and pesticides used in industrial agriculture.
Microplastics disintegrate into nanoplastics that are capable of segueing through cell walls. Thus, plants may join the animal-protein food contaminated with plastics.
As they use compost and other natural substances for crop nutrition and generally abstain from agrochemicals, organic and regenerative farms do not contribute to the tremendous plastics in the soils from plastic-coated capsules.
Industry Pioneer
Beginning in 2015, Earth Impact (then Elemental Impact) (Ei) delved into the plastic-pollution crisis with an emphasis on micro and nanoplastics.
Plastics GYRE Symposium
Ei provided behind-the-scenes support for the ground-breaking 2015 Plastic GYRE Symposium: Artists, Scientists and Activists Respond hosted in Atlanta by the Center for Disease Control and Georgia State University.
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Scott Seydel at the podium photo courtesy of Holly Elmore Images |
Founding Ei Chair Scott Seydel presented on the Beyond Greenwash: Extended Producer Responsibility panel with a powerful topic that emphasized plastic's value in the global economy. Scott focused on the current recycling rates, end uses for the various plastics, and how states with bottle bills enjoy significantly higher recycling rates.
Though first discovered in 2004 by University of Plymouth (United Kingdom) Professor Richard Thompson OBE FRS, awareness of microplastic pollution was not yet commonplace in 2015; thus, the Symposium addressed only the macro-plastic pollution crisis.
The RiA article, Plastic GYRE Symposium: Artists, Scientists and Activists Respond, chronicles the impressive symposium.
National Zero Waste Business Conference (NZWBC)
At the 2016 NZWBC hosted in Austin, Texas, Ei hosted an impressive, popular break-out session, The Macro Cost of Micro Contamination. Ei Partner Rick Lombardo, Natur-Tec Director Business Development, North America, was accompanied by 5 Gyres Director of Global Partnerships & Community Engagement Lia Colabella. Ei Founder & CEO Holly Elmore moderated the panel.
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Rick & Lia, the dynamic duo photo courtesy of Holly Elmore Images |
To help understand the origins of microplastic contamination, Rick educated on fragmentation, biodegradability and compostability as follows:
- Fragmentation – first step in the biodegradation process, in which organic matter is broken down into microscopic fragments.
- Biodegradability – complete microbial assimilation of the fragmented product as a food source by the soil microorganisms.
- Compostability – complete assimilation within 180 days in an industrial-compost environment.
Note the difference between biodegradability and compostibility is TIME. By definition, organic material decomposes within 180 days while bio-degradation may take as long as millions of years.
Due to the fragmentation process, ocean plastic pollution is now referred to as plastic smog. Clean-up is challenging to impossible due to the microscopic size of the plastic. Aquatic life consumes the fragmented plastic; larger pieces remain within the digestive tract and smaller ones integrate within the flesh. Thus, plastic enters the human-food system!
The RiA Magazine article, The Macro Cost of Micro Contamination, educates on the alarming environmental and health challenges associated microplastic pollution and provides a summary of the impressive session.
Plastics: a double-edged sword
In late 2019, Ei explored the plastic-pollution scenario via the RiA article, Plastics: a double-edged sword. From the article:
The seemingly magical gift of plastic came with a double-edged sword filled with the potential to destroy life as it is currently known on Earth.
In less than seventy years, humans managed to infiltrate the Earth with micro and nanoplastics from discarded single-use and durable products in literally every nook and cranny, ranging from the arctic snow caps to the depths of the oceans and everywhere in between.
It is time to shift perspectives from human-focused to life-focused and let the Earth show us how to heal the damage inflicted. Answers will come to those who live and take action from the heart.
Book cover photo courtesy of Holly Elmore Images |
As a pandemic project, Holly published the inaugural Ei book designed for print, From Macro to Micro to Nanoplastics, as an excerpt of the Plastics: a double-edged sword. Holly Elmore Images contributed images for the educational book.
Additionally, the book includes the following new sections:
- Plastics at the beach - showcases how readily available durable and single-use plastic items are common place during beach enjoyment.
- Beyond litter, cigarette butts are plastic pollution - explains how cigarette filters are made of cellulose acetate, a plastic.
- Ei Exploration of Fungi, Soil Health & World Hunger - gives an overview of the empowering October 2018 exploration.
- COVID-19 plastic pollution - explains how the recent pandemic resulted in a new surge in plastic pollution.
As Ei segues into the Era of Impact, a focus on micro and nanoplastics will interweave within the recently launched Ei Educates platform.
For additional information, contact Holly Elmore at 404-510-9336 | holly@earth-impact.org.
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