Microplastics are everywhere, and that needs to change

Microplastic is plastic that has broken down into tiny pieces that are 5mm or smaller. You might not be able to always see microplastics, but they’re everywhere. They’re on our beaches, in our water, and throughout our soil. They’re even in the air we breathe, the food we eat, and in our bodies, and have been linked to a huge range of illnesses.

The problem is plastic never goes away once it’s produced. It only breaks into smaller pieces in the environment.

This is bad news for our environment and for our health.

The microplastic problem is getting worse

The Ausmap Microplastic Assessment Project (AUSMAP) recently released its findings from three years of tracking microplastics along the NSW coastline. It found a threefold increase in microplastics compared to the previous monitoring period, four years earlier.

AUSMAP’s report shows increasing levels of all sorts of plastics in the environment, including construction and industrial debris and synthetic turf.

I joined AUSMAP to help measure microplastic waste on Manly Cove Beach. I was astonished by the amount of plastic I found in the tiny patch of sand I measured.

Anyone can join in this citizen science and contribute to the research. Visit ausmap.org to find out how to get involved.

You can download the report from AUSMAP here.

What’s the solution?

Plastic production needs to be reduced at its source, and the companies that profit from microplastic pollution should bear the cost of cleaning up their mess, not individuals or local councils.

I led a motion in Parliament this year, calling on the NSW Government to regulate plastic production to reduce it at its source and hold the producers of this pollution responsible. It passed with support across the Parliament.

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