• The ocean is in a state of emergency: the problem of marine litter is appalling, as the environmental impact of marine waste, especially plastics, has exceeded acceptable limits for possible regeneration of the oceans.
• In parallel with the criminal actions that have made the sea into a global dump, there is a serious lack of decision threatening this common good, with unacceptable situations of environmental destruction, and disproportionate damage to the ocean.
• Microplastics, already ostensibly visible in all natural systems, also require rapid and energetic action to halt the impact of their toxicity
Once at sea, plastic breaks up into tiny pieces, attracts chemicals dumped by industry and agriculture for decades, their toxicity increases, and enters the food chain through ingested marine animals, with very serious consequences for public health.
• The volume of trash brought to the shoreline has increased exponentially, patenting a very high percentage of fishery debris
• Protecting the ocean means eliminating marine pollution, mostly made up of plastics.
• As a strategy, upstream prevention is preferable to downstream removal (in terms of resources and expenditures), but the situation of dangerous disaster does not give a choice at this time.
• All delays in their removal imply unrecoverable losses
• There is an urgent need to advance firmly to solve this already irreversible tragedy – but still mitigable, if energetic actions come to intercede
• Is what is expected from those who are in a position to take the necessary decisions, in the necessary situations, and in the necessary moments – our local authorities
In addition to this global situation for India, with the economic axis of fisheries and tourism making the sea an essential resource along its 8.000 kms of coast, marine trash policy is a priority.
Because every piece of garbage removed from the shoreline, backwaters, rain drains and riverine streams, mitigates the hazardous contamination of the ocean, then, to safeguard the sea, the same cleaning of garbage done from the streets, roads, parks, bridges, etc., has to be made on the seashore in a systematic way, with the removal of highly polluting waste from the marine environment, which are macro and micro plastics in all their varieties.
The final assessment of the results of these cleanings will show the imperative need for their permanent execution by making patent the tons of plastics that are reverted to the marine environment by the absence of removal of the wastes deposited on the seafront and delivered daily by the sea.
