Sea Turtles and Marine Plastic Waste in the Waters Around Okinawa - May 2000

Sea Turtles and Marine Plastic Waste in the Waters Around Okinawa - May 2000

Plastic litter discharged from Japan, China, Korea, and other Pacific coastal countries is accumulating over a wide area in the North Pacific Ocean currents. Plastic litter in this area covers about 18 million square kilometers, and about 8 million tons of it flows into the ocean each year. Most of it is plastic bottles, packaging materials, and fishing gear, which drift adrift for long periods of time without decomposing.

These plastic debris have a serious impact on marine life, especially sea turtles, which are especially affected: more than 500 plastic fragments were found in the stomach of a sea turtle discovered in the waters around Okinawa in 2019, mostly attributed to polyvinyl chloride (PVC) and polyethylene (PE). Plastic fragments are further miniaturized to become microplastics, which can be taken into the bodies of fish, shellfish, and other organisms, and may have a negative impact on human health through the food chain.

It takes about 400 years for plastic to decompose naturally, and it is predicted that the total amount of plastic litter accumulated in the world's oceans will reach 150 million tons by 2020. Japanese companies such as Sumitomo Chemical and Toray are working to develop alternative plastic materials and enhance recycling technologies, but the current recycling rate is only about 9%.

The Japanese government has formulated a "Plastic Resource Recycling Strategy" and aims to reduce plastic use by 25% by 2030, but more than 8,000 tons of plastic waste is still not properly collected annually, and effective measures are urgently needed.