What is Marine debris and microplastics?
1. Marine garbage
Marine garbage refers to persistent, man-made, or processed solid wastes discarded or abandoned in Marine and coastal environments, including objects intentionally or unintentionally dumped in oceans and beaches, objects carried directly into the sea by rivers, sewage, storms, or strong winds, and accidentally lost fishing gear and goods
Marine garbage is divided into floating garbage, beach garbage, and seabed garbage.
Marine debris can affect the Marine landscape, threaten navigation safety, destroy habitats, and even cause serious impacts by entangling Marine life.
2. Marine microplastics
Plastics smaller than 5mm in the Marine environment are defined as Marine microplastics. Microplastics are widely found around the world’s ocean coasts, shelf marginal seas, open oceans, and even in the remotest depths and polar seas.
Due to their small size, microplastics are easily ingested by Marine organisms, affecting the growth, development, and reproduction of Marine organisms, and their ecological and environmental risks cannot be ignored.
Status of Marine garbage and microplastics pollution in China
In 2007, China officially launched the Marine garbage monitoring work, and in 2016, Marine microplastics were included in the routine monitoring of the Marine environment, and the monitoring results of China’s Marine garbage and microplastics were regularly released to the public through the Bulletin on the State of China’s Marine Ecological Environment. In 2021, China organized and carried out Marine garbage monitoring in 51 regions. Marine microplastic monitoring was carried out at 6 representative sections in offshore areas.
The results showed that plastic was the main type of Marine garbage in China, accounting for 92.9% of floating garbage, 75.9% of beach garbage, and 83.3% of seabed garbage, respectively. The mass density of floating garbage on the surface waters of China’s coastal waters is 36 kg/square kilometer, and the average density of microplastics in offshore waters is 044 pieces/cubic meter. The main components of microplastics are polyethylene terephthalate, polypropylene, polystyrene, and polyethylene. Compared with the results of similar international surveys in recent years, the average density of Marine garbage and microplastics in China’s coastal waters is at a medium and low level.
other
Low products wood products fabric metal glass rubber plastic
0%, 20%, 40%, 60%, 80%, 100%
The sea bottom of China is more than the beach version of floating garbage
In 2021
Third, China’s Marine garbage pollution prevention and control
Relevant departments and coastal local governments implemented the deployment requirements of the CPC Central Committee and The State Council on Marine garbage and microplastic pollution control, further strengthened supervision and management of Marine garbage, established and improved long-term mechanisms for Marine garbage cleaning, and achieved positive results in the prevention and control of Marine garbage pollution in China.
1. Strengthen the source of reduction
In accordance with the “opinions on further strengthening plastic pollution treatment” the “difference” plastic pollution control action plan deployment requirements, such as China’s relevant departments and local further strengthening of plastics pollution all chain actively promote production and use of source reduction, accelerate the plastic waste recycling and disposal, sharply reduce plastic environmental leakage.
2. Standardize end disposal
We will establish a garbage sorting, delivery, collection, transportation, and treatment system to significantly reduce the amount of plastic waste directly buried in landfills.
3. Carry out inventory clearing
Fujian province has established a comprehensive mechanism to control floating garbage on shore, block river basins, and clear the sea surface, so as to normalize the treatment of garbage on shorelines, rivers that enter the sea, and coastal waters.
Mechanism construction: 12 provincial action plans were issued
The responsible department carries out joint, clear puritanical management responsibility, and establishes the special fund.
Prevention and control at the source: Improve garbage collection, classification, and treatment facilities in towns and villages along the Gulf Coast and along the river, and reduce land-based garbage from the source into the river and sea.
Terminal cleanup: 24 Marine sanitation teams of more than 1,900 personnel and 167 cleaning and salvage vessels of various types have been set up, covering all coastal areas of the province. In 2021, the distribution density of floating garbage in key coastal areas will decrease by 46.6% compared with the previous year
Normal supervision: Relying on modern technology and information means such as an ecological cloud platform, 13 key bays, 235 inshore sea monitoring stations, 11 major rivers entering the sea and 25 major small basins entering the sea in the province are gathered into an “ocean information map”.
Wenzhou, Zhejiang province, has implemented comprehensive bay management, implemented a regular cleaning mechanism, and carried out regular inspections and assessments to select the “most beautiful” and “dirtiest” beaches.
Multiple departments in Shenzhen, Guangdong province, jointly issued plans for Marine garbage cleanup, forming a seamless and joint linkage mechanism between urban management and street departments in charge of coastal land garbage cleanup and maritime authorities in charge of Marine garbage cleanup.
4. Encourage public participation
In recent years, through newspapers, television networks, and other media and through public education, the state and local authorities have intensified the publicity of Marine garbage pollution, raised the awareness of the whole society of Marine garbage pollution prevention and control, and put an end to random dumping of garbage. Volunteer activities such as beach garbage cleaning have been organized in several coastal cities across the country to enhance public awareness of the prevention and control of Marine garbage pollution.
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