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World Oceans Day
World Oceans Day
World Oceans Day is a day dedicated to celebrating the world's oceans, their amazing diversity and the critical role they play in sustaining life on land.
None of us would intentionally throw plastic into the ocean; we know that it will harm marine life. But what about the plastic that we put into the ocean - silently and without thought. This year on World Oceans Day, uShaka Sea World is highlighting one of these less obvious ways plastic ends up in the ocean - through microbeads.
Every time you clean your teeth you are probably sending tiny plastic beads into the ocean. In one 250ml of body wash or standard toothpaste tube you will probably find hundreds of thousands microbeads - that's two teaspoons of plastic microbeads heading straight for the ocean though our drains, sewer systems and waterways. But - it is not only the microbeads that are a problem.
A healthy world for humans depends on healthy oceans. We can no longer enjoy the luxury of talking about marine conservation in terms of the benefit to our children and grandchildren - Caring for the health of our oceans is essential for our health, now.
Every piece of plastic that enters the ocean slowly breaks down into smaller pieces, and these smaller pieces can be eaten by a wide range of animals - from zooplankton to fish, seabirds, turtles, mussels and marine animals. Just think, next time you tuck into your fish and chips, you may even be eating plastic microbeads.
You can help to solve this problem. Next time you are shopping for toiletries avoid purchasing products that contain microbeads. Look on the label for the following words: Polyethylene (PE), Polypropylene (PP), Polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA), Polyethylene terephthalate (PET), Nylon (PA) - these all indicate the product may contain micro beads.
For more info - contact Ann Kunz during office hours on 031 - 328 8222.