The World Of Tzu Chi(Vol.116)

eature I n August 2019, a team of researchers from the United States Geological Survey (USGS) made a startling discovery: traces of plastic were identified in over 90 percent of rainwater samples collected from various sites between Denver and Boulder, Colorado. The USGS later released a report on the phenomenon entitled “It is raining plastic”. The team found mostly strands of plastic in assorted colours that resemble microfibers from synthetic materials. The report also revealed that plastic fibres were observed in both urban locales as well as locations as remote and mountainous as the Rocky Mountain National Park, situated 3,159 m above sea level. The findings are indicative of the alarming proliferation of plastic particles in the environment, to the extent of seeping into the atmosphere and polluting not only the land and oceans, but also rainwater. In 2015, scientists spent more than ten minutes extracting a plastic straw lodged up a turtle’s nostrils on a beach in Costa Rica. In 2009, American photographer Chris Jordan captured an unsettling image of plastic waste spilling from the rotting carcass of an albatross. The evolution of plastic This timeline traces the development of the ubiquitous synthetic material with a history that dates back centuries. 2019 • 11 06