KOCHI: Plastic is a danger not only for humans but also for the rest of the animal kingdom, said M Sudhakar, director, Centre for Marine Living Resources and Ecology (CMLRE).“Till now everyone has been concentrating on the problems caused by plastics on land. However, even a greater threat is lurking in the oceans and seas. It is none other than microplastics,” he said.
As a part of ‘Swachata Hi Seva’ campaign launched by the Central government in association with the 150th birth anniversary celebrations of Mahatma Gandhi, FORV Sagar Sampada, a research ship operated by CMLRE, charted a journey from Porbandar in Gujarat touching ports like Karwar in Rajasthan, Malipuram in Kozhikode to Mattanchery Wharf in Kochi.
“Sagar Sampada, which will be celebrating its 35th birthday this month, is the only research vessel in the country that researches both fisheries and oceanography,” he said. According to him, the open day was organised as a part of the initiative to make the public, especially the student community, aware of the importance of doing away with plastic.
“It will be difficult for us to eradicate plastic in one go as we are all dependent on it. However, it is high we reduced our dependence on it,” said Sudhakar.
According to the scientists onboard the ship, the Union Government has given in-principle approval to a `7,000 crore deep-sea mission. “A portion of the funds will be used to study the effects of microplastics on the entire marine ecosystem. We want to identify the quantum of accumulation of micro-plastics in the marine organisms and eventually in human beings,” said the scientists.