Ocean Plastic - Learn with us!
We love the sea! Do you too?
And that’s why we decided to create this page together with biologist and marine plastic expert Andreas Noe, to learn. When we started Ocean Package, we initially used marine plastic in our packaging, but then realized that it might not have the desired sustainable effect, so we switched to Ocean Stopped Plastic.
The topic of plastic, the sea, and environmental protection is very complex, and only with a constant desire to do the right thing will we make progress. This page will evolve every month and dive deeper into the details – join us on a journey to protect the sea!
Problem Plastic
Plastic is almost impossible to imagine in our daily lives – it’s lightweight, practical, and cheap to produce.
But that’s exactly the problem: Since the 1950s, over 8 billion tons of plastic have been produced worldwide, and every year around 350 million tons are added. Unfortunately, only a small portion of that is recycled. Just 9% of all plastic makes its way back into the cycle. The rest is either disposed of in landfills, exported, burned – releasing harmful greenhouse gases – or ends up in the environment, particularly in our oceans (1).
Ocean Plastic
More than 1 million tons of plastic end up in the oceans each year. A large portion of this comes from land: through rivers, rain, and wind, waste is carried into the sea. Open landfills and poorly functioning waste disposal systems are particularly problematic, as they release plastic waste uncontrollably into nature (2). But the fishing industry and shipping also contribute – for example, through lost nets or carelessly discarded waste (3).
The biggest problem: Plastic is extremely durable. Although it breaks down into smaller and smaller pieces, it never fully disappears. Thus, it remains a global issue that affects not only the oceans but also us humans.
Ocean cleanup initiatives: Greenwashing or saviors?
So what should we do with all the plastic in the sea? Should we just fish it out and recycle it? As great as that sounds, it is unfortunately far from a true solution.
A large part of the plastic sinks to the ocean floor, drifts far away with ocean currents, or breaks down into the smallest particles – recovery is extremely difficult (4).
Additionally, plastic in the sea is exposed to harsh environmental factors: sun, salt, and sand make it brittle, while algae, bacteria, and other marine life can settle on the surface and create their own ecosystems. Not only organisms but also heavy metals, antibiotics, and other molecules have been found to accumulate on degrading plastic. This contamination significantly reduces the quality of the plastic, making it almost impossible to recycle it into high-quality products.
Another issue is the variety of plastic types. Since many plastics are made of different materials, recycling is already challenging. When they break down in the sea, it is often no longer recognizable which type of plastic it is – making reuse nearly impossible (5).
Furthermore, the term “marine plastic” is not regulated and may only refer to plastic from coastal areas (6). This uncertainty about the origin and quality of the material highlights the challenge of recovery. Can a constant flow of usable plastic really be guaranteed?
In the long term, it’s clear: the problem must be tackled at the root. Overproduction of plastic, single-use products, and poor waste management must be addressed first to create a lasting solution. Products made from marine plastic alone will not save the oceans. When companies communicate only “savior solutions” while avoiding the real problem, the greenwashing alarms go off.
The solution: Circular economy in the fight against marine plastic.
Not only marine plastic, but many other global problems can be solved through an effective circular economy. Instead of just recycling plastic, the circular economy focuses on reusing resources, avoiding waste, and designing products so they can be repaired and reused. This reduces the amount of new plastic being produced and prevents it from ending up in the oceans. Circular economy not only promotes environmental protection but also offers economic opportunities by encouraging businesses to adopt sustainable business models. It helps us fight the climate crisis and biodiversity loss while also creating new jobs. By consuming consciously and embracing the circular economy, we can all have a positive impact on reducing marine plastic. (8) Stay tuned, because next month we’ll dive deeper into the topic. Together, we can make a difference – for our oceans and for the future of the planet!
Sources:
(1) Geyer, R., Jambeck, J. R., & Law, K. L. (2017). Production, use, and fate of all plastics ever made. Science Advances, 3(7), e1700782.
(2) Lebreton, L. C. M., Van Der Zwet, J., Damsteeg, J. W., Slat, B., Andrady, A., & Reisser, J. (2017). River plastic emissions to the world’s oceans. Nature Communications, 8, 15611.
(3) Wilcox, C., Mallos, N. J., Leonard, G. H., Rodriguez, A., & Hardesty, B. D. (2015). Using expert elicitation to estimate the impacts of plastic pollution on marine wildlife. Marine Policy, 65, 107–114.
(4) García Rellán, A., Vázquez Ares, D., Vázquez Brea, C., Francisco López, A.,Bello Bugallo, P. (2023). Sources, sinks and transformations of plastics in our oceans: Review, management strategies and modelling.
(5) Ronkay, F., Molnar, B., Gere, D., Czigany, T., (2001) Plastic waste from marine environment: Demonstration of possible routes for recycling by different manufacturing technologies.
(6) https://www.focus.de/earth/experten/warum-ozeanplastik-nur-selten-aus-dem-meer-kommt_id_194483813.html
(7) Rafa et al. (2023). Microplastics as carriers of toxic pollutants: Source, transport, and toxicological effects.
(8) Ellen MacArthur Foundation, “Circular Economy Overview,” 2024