Just breathe (out the microplastics). Photo: Unsplash
Bottlenose dolphins probably don’t have the greatest breath. Fishy, one imagines. According to a new study, though, fishy is not all that’s on the breath of dolphins — that breath is also full of microplastics.
“In the environment, plastics can degrade into microparticles where exposure has been documented in a variety of fauna at all trophic levels,” the study, published in PLOS One reads. “Previous studies of bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) have reported prevalent exposure to plasticizing chemicals (e.g., phthalates) as well as particle loads in gastrointestinal tracts, but exposure from inhalation has not yet been studied.”
Dolphins studied in Sarasota Bay in Florida and Barataria Bay in Louisiana were apparently found to be exhaling microplastic fibers.
“Our research found microplastics in the breath of dolphins living in both urban and rural estuaries,” wrote Leslie Hart and but we don’t yet know whether there are major differences in amounts or types of plastic particles between the two habitats.”
Tiny little bits of plastic are everywhere these days. In our soil, in our bodies, in our air and water. From the clouds to the bottom of the Mariana Trench, plastic is there. There are an estimated 170-trillion pieces of microplastics in the oceans alone, and that number is too big to compute.
Inhaled microplastics, as you might have guessed, are not good for anyone. In humans, and likely in dolphins, too, they can cause a variety of problems. Lung inflammation can lead to tissue damage, excess mucus, pneumonia, bronchitis, and more.
Plastics also have chemicals in them that can affect all sorts of things, like reproduction, cardiovascular health, and brain function. While most of the studies have been done on humans, it stands to reason that microplastics would have similar effects on other mammals, too.
The plastics get into the ocean from runoff and wastewater, where they then break down into smaller and smaller pieces. Ocean waves disperse the smallest of them into the air, which is worrisome because concentrations will be higher near the coast. Some 41 percent of the world’s population lives on or near the coast, so it’s worth keeping track of. And that’s why this study on bottlenose dolphins is so disturbing.
That study shows just how extensive plastic pollution is, and how it’s not just us who are affected by it. “While the impacts of plastic inhalation on dolphins’ lungs are not yet known, the authors concluded, ‘people can help address the microplastic pollution problem by reducing plastic use and working to prevent more plastic from polluting the oceans.'”
