The Great Lakes are a collection of five lakes: Superior, Michigan, Huron, Erie, and Ontario, which lie between the United States and Canada. They make up the largest group of freshwater lakes in the world and have an area of 245,100 km², irrigating an area of 521,830 km². They contain 21% of the world’s fresh water and are vital for agriculture and water supply in the region.
Two doctoral students, Hailey McIlwraith and Eden Hataley, analyzed data from the past decade with the support of professor and ecologist Chelsea Rochman, who has long studied the effects of plastic on water currents.
They also collaborated with the Experimental Lakes Region research center in northwestern Ontario.
According to their results, almost 90% of the water samples taken from the lakes during this period exceeded the safe levels of plastic for aquatic fauna.
It is clear that microplastics are a problem for Canada and the United States, Hataley said in a news release. According to her, the management of the Great Lakes should reflect the seriousness of the situation.
The studies were published as part of a project created at the request of Environment and Climate Change Canada to examine the level of pollution in the Great Lakes and the risks plastic poses to wildlife.
The researchers found plastic microfibers in fish from Lake Huron and Lake Ontario.
Photo: Lisa Erdle
wildlife at risk
The researchers used a scale established by California researchers to assess the risk that the amount of microplastics in a waterway poses to wildlife.
More than 20% of the water samples reach the highest level of risk. A quote from Eden Hataley, researcher and co-author of the study.
This amount of plastic can be harmful to animals, which may ingest it thinking it is food. Sometimes these microplastics pass from the stomach to other parts of the body.
A low risk to wildlife health means that only a small percentage of wildlife (5%) will be affected. The animal will not die, but it will suffer tissue damage, Chelsea Rochman added. At this level, the government will be asked to police the watercourse.
If the risk is considered high, this means that immediate measures must be taken as exposure can cause the death of an animal and weaken its reproductive capacity. In these circumstances, more than 10% of wildlife could suffer the consequences.
As for the risks to humans, some studies, including one from the University of Minnesota on beer made from Great Lakes water, show that people are also exposed to microplastics, but the impact is yet to be determined, he explained. the researcher. hataley.
Chelsea Rochman, a professor at the University of Toronto, and her team analyzed plastic debris found in Lake Ontario.
Photo: Radio-Canada / Inayat Singh
Governments must act
Researcher Eden Hataley said Canada and the United States could act quickly, including amending the Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement, to make plastics a chemical of concern.
That would speed things up. We could start monitoring streams together and collate all actions taken to identify gaps in our response, Hataley explained.
Globally, all models indicate that if we maintain the status quo, the amount of plastic we will find in the environment will increase each year. A quote from Eden Hataley, researcher and co-author of the study.
This collaboration between countries would be essential for the proper functioning of the management of the Great Lakes, since it would allow harmonizing monitoring methods.
I think it’s important to set up a monitoring strategy and use it to prevent plastics from ending up in lakes and even having to clean them up, said professor and ecologist Chelsea Rochman.
She also hopes that the industries and municipalities will take the necessary measures.
We need to put filters in our appliances to prevent the fibers from our clothes from ending up in the water. We also need to find a way to capture the waste that flows into stormwater systems. A quote from Chelsea Rochman, professor and ecologist at the University of Toronto.
According to Rochman, another study, which would seek to better understand the interaction between plastics and freshwater rivers, could help develop better management strategies for the Great Lakes.
Fuente: RC / C. St-Pierre
Adaptation: RCI / R. Valencia
2023-08-23 14:43:52
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