Contraction of “plastic” and “crust”, the plasticrust, behind its bizarre sounds, hides a worrying environmental reality: it is a type of rock formed by plastic, deriving from the pollution of the oceans (mainly from fishing nets in the case of Trindade ), gets stuck in the rock. The melting of the plastic mixes with the mineral materials present on the beach and their combination then forms a thick crust that covers the coasts.
Sad consequence of human action
The first plasticrocks were discovered by Portuguese scientists in 2016, in Madeira. The plastic particles would cover 9.46 there % of the rock surface of the volcanic island.
Fernanda Avelar Santos, geologist, discusses the significance of these finds for our colleagues from FranceInfo : “ This type of plastic waste in rock formations will go down in the records as a symbol of the Anthropocene, this concept of a geological era in which humans have an influence on nature “. The latter fears that the erosion of the rocks will cause ” a loss of plastic microorganisms into the ocean which would contaminate the island’s food chain and damage coastal ecosystems.
While the No Plastic In My Sea association published a new report on March 16 that invites public authorities to address the issue of plastic pollution, listing 500 existing initiatives around the world that demonstrate that it is possible to act and proposing further ways of contrasting it, it is it becomes urgent to invest collectively to fight this scourge that is upsetting marine and terrestrial biodiversity.
Source: Madmoizelle
Mary Crossley is an author at “The Fashion Vibes”. She is a seasoned journalist who is dedicated to delivering the latest news to her readers. With a keen sense of what’s important, Mary covers a wide range of topics, from politics to lifestyle and everything in between.
