Study: plastic more lethal

MARINE ANIMALS DYING: THRESHOLD MUCH SMALLER THAN EXPECTED

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Marine animals inevitably eat what we toss in the ocean, including pervasive plastics but how much is too much?

The bar is low, according to a new study out this week: less than three sugar cubes worth could kill birds like Atlantic puffins, for example.

That threshold “is much smaller than we expected,” said Erin Murphy, ocean plastics researcher at the Ocean Conservancy, the nonprofit behind the study.

The paper published by The Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences saw researchers analyse necropsies from more than 10 000 animals in a bid to model how different types of plastic can affect marine life, and at what point the dose turns lethal.

“The science is clear,” Murphy said. “We do need to reduce the amount of plastics we produce. We need to improve collection and recycling, and we need to clean up what’s already out there.”