Editorial— Science Progress Special Issue on “Microplastics in our environment: Impacts and solutions”
Abstract
The prevalence of plastics has reached the point where it is difficult to live a day without using some type of plastic, whether fiber (e.g. clothing, facial masks), microbeads (e.g. personal care and cosmetic products), single-use products (e.g. water bottles, containers, plastic grocery bags), or large plastic goods (e.g. toys, mobile phones). Thus, efforts have been made to enhance public awareness about the consequences of the “Plastic Age” through various statistics on the mountainous plastic wastes on land and in the ocean and analytical reports on the consequent damages that occur through the life cycle of plastic products. Many governments and international organizations list plastic pollution at the top of their policy agenda, and the number of policies and regulations related to plastics has increased rapidly. To reduce the use of plastics in daily life globally, the nature of these policies has been strengthened from voluntary policies and recommendations to binding policies and enforcement. Unfortunately, until recently, these regulations have been ineffective in many areas because plastic waste management conditions were not improved. Various reports confirm the increasing amount of plastic waste and pieces of microplastics, which occur everywhere: in deep oceans, Arctic snow and Antarctic ice, shellfish, table salt, drinking water, drifting in the air, in soil, and in flowing freshwater or groundwater aquifers. Moreover, the nature of plastic pollution has been…
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