Micro-plastics in Bottled Waters

Why in news?

A new research has shown the presence of micro-plastic particles in bottled drinking waters.

What are the findings?

Bottled waters are found to be contaminated with plastic including polypropylene, nylon, and polyethylene terephthalate (PET).
A single bottle could hold dozens or possibly even thousands of microscopic plastic particles.
The study finds a global average of 10.4 plastic particles per litre, in the 100 micron or 0.10 millimetre size range.
The tests also showed a much greater number of even smaller particles which are also likely plastic.
The global average for these smaller particles is around 300 per litre.
Water in glass bottles is also found to hold micro-plastics.

Why is the study so significant?

Bottled water is marketed as the very essence of purity.
It is in fact the fastest-growing beverage market in the world.
Bottled water output will soon hit 300 billion litres a year.
Packaged water is a lifeline for many people worldwide who have no other option for safe drinking water.
Notably, some 4,000 children die every day from water-borne diseases.

What is the concern with micro-plastics?

Sources - Micro-plastics are particles that are smaller than 5 millimetres in size.
They enter the environment as primary industrial products, such as those used in scrubbers and cosmetics.
It could also enter via urban waste water and broken-down elements of articles discarded by consumers.
Washing of clothes too releases synthetic microfibres into water bodies and the sea.
Presence - Micro-plastics escape the filtration and treatment processes for waste water, and end up in sites of nature.
The durable properties of plastics make them persistent and slow to degrade in the environment.
Evidently, various studies have found micro-plastics in the oceans, soil, air, lakes, and rivers.
It thus enters the food chains of even birds, animals and fishes.
This results in significant global impacts on wildlife, from marine environment pollution.

Is this a human health concern?

Micro-plastics hold the potential for both bioaccumulation and biomagnification.
It may thus finally end up in the human body.
But based on current limited knowledge on the effects, there is little human health concern.
This is because the human body is well-adapted to dealing with non-digestible particles.
As much as 90% of micro-plastic that is consumed might be excreted.
Of the other 10%, some plastic under 150 microns (0.15 millimetres) could enter the gut's lymphatic system.
It may pass from the bloodstream to the kidneys or liver.
Notably, the recent bottled water study finds plastics within this range.
But how plastic behaves in the gut is still based on assumptions from scientific models and not from proper studies.
Also, the knowledge on the various chemicals present in plastics is limited.
So the health impact may not yet be clear, but indisputably these are contaminants.
Research evidence from complementary fields indicates that accumulation of these chemicals can induce or aggravate immune responses in the body.

What does it call for?

Awareness - Micro-plastic is not directly regulated in bottled water.
But legislations make it clear that there must be no contaminants.
It is the government's responsibility to educate people to know what they are drinking and eating.
Studies - The WHO has come forward to commission a review of the health impact of plastics in water.
More such studies, as a globally coordinated effort, are necessary to assess the impact of plastics on health.
India - India has a major problem dealing with plastics, particularly single-use shopping bags.
These reach dumping sites, rivers and wetlands along with other waste.
The most efficient way is to control the production and distribution of plastics.
Banning single-use bags and making consumers pay a significant amount for the more durable ones is a feasible solution.
Enforcing Solid Waste Management Rules, 2016, requiring segregation of waste materials, will reduce the burden on the environment.
Waste separation can be done in partnership with the community, and it presents a major employment opportunity as well.
The very nature of plastics has to be changed from being cheap and disposable to durable, reusable and fully recyclable.

Source: The Hindu

Quick Fact

Bioaccumulation

Bioaccumulation is the accumulation of substances or chemicals in an organism, and toxins building up in a food chain.
It occurs when an organism absorbs a substance at a rate faster than that at which it is lost by catabolism and excretion.

Biomagnification

Biomagnification is the increasing concentration of a toxic substance at successively higher trophic levels in a food chain.