Effects of ocean trash
Effects on humans
It doesn't just have harmful effects on animals, it afects humans too. Poepl walking along the beach can be seriously injured if they stepped on washed up trash such as, broken glass, cans, needles , ect. Similar to the animals, swimmers and divers can also become tangled in things like fishing nets.
When trash ends up in the ocean, many people think nothing of it. If they knew that it doesn't only effect the wildlife, but also the economy and human health and safety, do you think people would care more about it? There are many different ways animals, humans and the economy are effected by ocean trash. No one wants to visit a beach and find it filled with washed up trash, not only does it look bad, its also very dangerous for adults and especially kids; but what is really effected the most is the animals.
6 Magazine / April, 2013
Effects on wildlife
Animals often mistake the trash in the ocean as food so they ingest it. As it builds up in the animals somach, it leaves them feeling full which can lead to malnutrition or stavation. Not only that but some of the trash contains very harmful substances which can lead to death. The animals don't even have to ingest it to be affected. They often get tangled in it, causing injuries and even death. Animals that are tangled in it are at risk of: suffocation, startvation, drowning, vulnerablility to predators, ect. PLants and immobile animals are also highly affected by it. They often get smothered by platic bags or fishing nets. The trash also can contribute to transfering invasive species. The floating debri carries the invasive species form one location to another. In a study by by the British Antarctic Survey in 2002, it was estimated that man-made debris found in the oceans has approximately doubled the number of different species found in the subtropics.
By Eva Fries
http://water.epa.gov/type/oceb/marinedebris/images/coral_reef-noaa_1.jpg
http://ecology.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/seal-plastic-ring.jpg
http://water.epa.gov/type/oceb/marinedebris/md_impacts.cfm