Real Story. Real Stupid.
You probably heard in the news that on November 19th, 2018, a sperm whale carcass washed ashore in Southern Indonesia. You may have been upset by this news or even appalled to learn that this sperm whale contained over 100 plastic cups, 4 plastic bottles, 25 plastic bags, two flip flops, and hundreds of other pieces of plastic totaling 13 pounds. What's shocking about this story is that this happens on the regular.
A healthy sperm whale can live for more than 70 years. Adult males can reach 67 feet in length and weigh in excess of 100,000 pounds. Sperm whales enjoy eating squid, fish, and octopus. They can consume 2,000 pounds of food per day. Sperm whales are a vulnerable species and are protected in most of the world.
February 27,2018. On a rocky beach in Cape Palos, a deceased sperm whale washed ashore. Cape Palos is a is a port city in the Mediterranean. This whale was a juvenile and weighed in at only 13,000 pounds. It was very malnourished due to having 65 pounds of plastic stuck in its stomach and intestines. The necropsy found plastic bags, garbage bags, ropes, netting, and even a plastic drum. The whale didn't starve to death. It's stomach ruptured and it died from peritonitis, an infection in the abdomen. This finding has prompted Spain to clean up its beaches and reduce the amount of plastic pollution going into the water.
In 2008, two sperm whales washed ashore on a beach in Northern California. The first whale had suffered death from a ruptured stomach, just like the whale in Cape Palos. The second whale slowly starved to death because it was literally stuffed with 160 pounds of plastic bags and netting. Considering an average plastic bag from your big box store weighs between 5 and 9.5 grams, that's a lot of volume. If you average the weight per bag at 7 grams, that equals 10,368 plastic bags in one sperm whale. Obviously, I didn't account for the weight of the netting, but does it matter? The point remains the same. I imagine I would be rather uncomfortable from swallowing a single plastic bag.
It is estimated that each year one million birds and 100,000 marine mammals and sea turtles die from ingesting or becoming entangled in plastic. Plastic is one of the biggest threats to whales and dolphins.
China is the biggest producer of plastic. They manufacture 3 million tons per year. Indonesia is second place, followed by the UK, Philippines, Thailand, Vietnam, and Russia. Indonesia is implementing changes and aims to decrease plastic use by 70% by 2025.
My two cents: We all see these stories in the news and talk about how awful it is that we are doing this to the environment and the animals that have done nothing to contribute to this terrible problem. Instead of making a change, most people go right back to the same irresponsible behavior. Giving up plastic and being less wasteful is a process, but it can be done much easier than most people think. It's rewarding to feel like you are making a difference, however small that little bit may be.
Rating: I give this story 5 out of 5 possible slow claps because it breaks my heart that animals are suffering prolonged, painful deaths through no fault of their own. Plastic pollution is preventable yet we keep making more and more instead of trying to cut back. Single use or "disposable" plastic is the biggest contributor in this issue. How much is enough?
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