BREAKING DOWN THE INVISIBLE ENEMY

IT'S IN YOUR FOOD, YOUR TEA, YOUR BLOOD-AND POSSIBLY EVEN YOUR LIVER AND BRAIN. IT'S INSIDE US, AND AROUND US, AND IT'S ALARMING. LIKE THE REST OF THE WORLD, AFRICA TOO IS GRAPPLING WITH THE RISING THREAT OF MICROPLASTICS. THIS PERSISTENT, NEARLY INDESTRUCTIBLE MATERIAL COULD BRING ENVIRONMENTAL RUIN, OR CREATE FINANCIAL AND ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITY. HOW IS THE CONTINENT DEALING WITH IT?

- Freddie Hiney

In South Africa, another load of waste enters Cape Town’s Coastal Park Landfill on a wintry Tuesday morning in September, prompting a flock of seagulls to continue its daily ritual of pecking through what seems to be a contaminated pile of plastic, food, clothes, and everything in between.

Two driving lanes separate the landfill from the Indian Ocean, but these opportunistic gulls have found a feeding loophole, an endless supply of human excess. On a bad day, it can be seen as a drive past mountains of stinking waste, dramatized by the deafening tone of countless seagulls squawking. On a good day, the mountain is more reminiscent of a hill, but the high-pitched sounds remain.

Like these birds, millions across the continent depend on waste for food and income, regardless of its toxicity, which, for the majority of Africa, is spiraling out of control, like wildfire.

Communities from around the continent are grappling with plastic pollution, along with diminishing biomes and desolated food supplies. It’s an omnipresent reality garnering worldwide attention. In addition, scientists are fearful of another escalating threat: microplastics (MPs).

Developed around the 1950s, plastic-a cheap polymer produced from petrochemicals-has become unimaginable in the modern world. It helps to transport and preserve fresh fruit and vegetables, aids in the production of smartphones and medical supplies, and is used extensively in construction and automotive components.

However, many plastic products are single-use-some last for years-and they all eventually deteriorate, their synthetic framework unable to biodegrade. Instead, they are broken down into hundreds, thousands, and, sometimes, millions of particles, subsequently entering our environments and food chains.

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