The extent and danger of pollution with plastic waste have urgently to be revised, because now he is able to masquerade as other objects, and therefore remain invisible. We are talking about the material “pyroplastic”, which indirectly provided by nature, although alien to her. Scientists have no idea how much it has accumulated in the world, but patterns are found on both sides of the Atlantic ocean in vast areas.
Environmental scientist Andrew Turner from the University of Plymouth and his colleagues conducted a study of 165 pieces of plastic from the beaches of the Gulf of Whitsand in Cornwall (UK). And then compared them with samples from Spain, Ireland and the Orkneys. They found that pyroplastic mainly composed of polyethylene, interspersed with polypropylene. This is the standard packing materials, they became the raw material from which nature creates pyroplastic.
After examining the samples, the researchers came to the conclusion that the original polymer is first melted or greatly softened, and then subjected to erosion by waves and wind. Because of this, they become very similar to normal pebbles, pebbles on beaches, but only a form and appearance. Inside it’s all the same plastic, and it is quite harmful contaminants like chromate of lead, which were previously used for staining of colorless polymers. This confirms the theory about the age of pyroplastic because such supplements are banned for many years, and the process of erosion is also not fast. This means that the newly discovered pollutants are formed for a long time – for decades, at least.
At the moment scientists can not offer an effective method for the detection of pyroplastic. After sifting through millions of tons of sand and pebbles in search of “fake” stones absolutely impossible. Experts are inclined to think that you have to allocate pyroplastic in a separate type of pollution, the effects of which on nature remains to be explored.
Source — Science of The Total Environment