Over 129 Billion face masks and 65 Billion gloves were reportedly manufactured every month during COVID times. A drastic increase in use of masks, gloves and PPE kits, plus a decline in recycling programs, is threatening the health of seas.
The problem is attributed to the uneducated people, not the virus.
Logically, Yes. However, we need scientific data before we can say YES or No.
Masks and gloves as bio- and ecological hazard
Yes, the improper disposal of the masks and gloves by people using it in millions during the COVID-19 can be a bio-hazard as well as an environmental hazard.
This is not only at beaches, it is everywhere.
1. https://www.news18.com/news/buzz/an-ecological-disaster-masks-gloves-found-in-mediterranean-raise-alarm-about-covid-19-waste-2639873.html
2. https://www.localmemphis.com/article/news/improper-disposal-of-masks-and-gloves-can-contribute-to-the-spread-of-covid-19/522-2a60561b-05db-4b4c-8ae8-3cff6bd0a73f
Muhammad Yousuf Amina Mudhafar Al-Nima absolutely correct sir...its not only in beaches, its evereywhere and this plastic pollution is raising faster than thought. people should realize this and behave with more civic and common sense.
Gary Joseph Ordog yes sir very sad.. we are now using our oceans as household dustbins
absolutely yes, especially where there is improper handling or disposal
Very interesting answers by all.
There are more interesting questions one would like to answer, such as !!
https://www.researchgate.net/post/What_is_COVID-safety_distance_with_mask_and_without_mask
https://www.researchgate.net/post/What_are_pros_and_cons_of_online_teaching_How_CORONA_changed_your_perspective
https://www.researchgate.net/post/How_to_start_working_in_your_Laboratory_or_Office_after_Lock-down_due_to_Corona
https://www.researchgate.net/post/How_to_start_working_in_your_Laboratory_or_Office_after_Lock-down_due_to_Corona
https://www.researchgate.net/post/Is_it_possible_to_Fully-open_School_College_or_University_without_a_Covid-Vaccine
Yes, the pollution of the seas and oceans with plastic waste is a serious and rapidly growing problem. There are also millions of protective masks in rivers, lakes, seas and oceans, which people throw away in different places instead of throwing them into specially prepared containers. There are many tons of non-biodegradable plastics in the water of the seas and oceans. Some plastic waste, such as plastic bags, plastic cups, etc. used as disposable packaging in water decompose very slowly. However, the effects of this decay are also very harmful to the living organisms inhabiting the seas and oceans, to the various forms of flora and fauna. Microplastic particles precipitate from plastic waste and penetrate the bodies of marine and oceanic living organisms, causing poisoning, diseases, etc. Then, a person consumes, for example, fish with microplastic particles in their bodies. In addition, various types of pollution are one of the factors of coral reef dying out. It is necessary to develop waste segregation systems, improve recycling techniques, clean sea beaches and coastal zones from various types of waste, create and implement biodegradable substitutes for plastics, develop social media campaigns to make citizens aware of the dangers of littering, develop sustainable, pro-environmental tourism, etc.
Greetings,
Dariusz Prokopowicz
Yes. Please see the following RG link.
Article Plastic waste release caused by COVID-19 and its fate in the...
Please also visit the following useful links.
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0025326X21004537
https://pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/acs.estlett.1c00748