Biomagnification of micro beads in fish is an increasing problem in the Great Lakes and Wisconsin. The beads are found in soaps and toothpaste. They find their way down the drain and aren't filtered out by the water treatment facilities because of its small size. It then finds its way into lakes, rivers, streams where it is mistaken for food by small fish and eaten. Then many of these little fish with these beads are eaten by larger fish. So the amount of plastic that larger fish has increases with every contaminated little fish it eats. Then an even larger fish eats that and the process is repeated until the food chain reaches the top predator who has a very a high level of micro bead contaminants. There are no clean up efforts being considered but Governor Scott Walker is eliminating them from Wisconsin completely. He signed legislature that phases out their manufacturing by 2018 and their sale by 2019.
"Wisconsin to Phase out Microplastics to Protect Great Lakes." Wisconsin to Phase out Microplastics to Protect Great Lakes. Wisconsin Gazette, n.d. Web. 02 Oct. 2015. <http://www.wisconsingazette.com/wisconsin/wisconsin-to-phase-out-microplastics-to-protect-great-lakes.html>.
This assignment was partially completed. While every requirement was met, explanations were very brief and did not go into detail at all. In order for this to be complete, the author must go deeper into each topic and elaborate upon what they are saying.
ReplyDeleteQuestion: Why are these microbeads harmful to organisms?
I was surprised that no clean up efforts were in place in Wisconsin.