The deep sea challenges the passionate souls. From the day I arrived in Phu Quoc, I nonchalantly do many new things but also clearly feel the "fears" that I usually can't see. It's like marine life is being threatened and destroyed by super tiny plastics.
Have you ever wondered where the plastic goes when we throw away? Turns out, it wasn't going anywhere. Instead, those plastic waste goes straight out to the ocean, and stays there forever.
(Photo by Thái)
Plastic won't disappear under the deep sea but breaks down into smaller pieces. They're called microplastics. At first glance, they look just like food for an underwater ecosystem. This is extremely dangerous to marine animals, especially sea turtles, seagulls, dolphins and whales. They will mistake plastic bags floating in the water for jellyfish and inadvertently edible, penetrating organs and clogging the digestive tract, life-threatening. If you often follow marine environment updates channels like Sava, then the image of turtles or fish eating wrongly must be stuck between plastic bags is very familiar. Perhaps it itself didn't expect the surrounding house with 4 peaceful surfaces, now occupied by plastic waste.
Although islanders collect trash out of the ocean that washed up on the shore every day, the truth is that it cannot be cleaned completely. Plastic trash is now part of the ocean and we don’t know the full extent of the toxicity caused by us human, but the consequences will be huge. Imagine fish eating microplastic, then we eat fish, that's already dangerous. Not to mention plastic trash kills the marine ecosystem, there will soon be no fish to catch and it's a misery for the fishermen.
Eliminating single-use plastics and not discharging recklessly into water sources is a top priority to protect our own and wildlife health. Bring a reusable cloth bag when going to the market or buying everyday items. Use metal straws or reusable rice flour ones, spare food containers so less plastic use when eating out. Pay attention to small things is enough for Mother Nature to appreciate.
Sava is using reef-safe sunscreen these days so that we can visit the corals while reduce the impact on the environment.
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