Plastic Oceans: What Do We Know?
Plastic is a human-made substance that has been accumulating in the ocean upon disposal and harming aquatic species for years. In order to limit its usage, Britain is planning to impose a charge on plastic bags. Many organisms such as birds have been found dead with plastic particles in their bodies due to the 8 million tons of plastic that is dumped into the ocean every year. Plastic causes organisms to choke and miniscule particles of plastic can be toxic to their bodies. Plastic does not break down easily, so it persists in the ocean and through the food chain. Among other ways, it can also enter the ocean by being blown off of nearby landfills. When humans eat seafood, we are also ingesting the plastic particles that have accumulated in their bodies. Scientists speculate that anyone who eats an average amount of seafood consume about 11,000 plastic particles a year. Although the new charge on plastic bags will contribute towards eliminating the threat that plastic poses on our oceans, much more has to be done globally to have any effect on the ocean.
The article provides information about how plastic substances in the ocean are affecting the aquatic organisms and human health. It connects this information with society because it is explaining Britain’s decision to introduce a charge for plastic bags. Britain’s new legislation will give people an incentive to limit their plastic usage in order to avoid the negative consequences that it has on humans and the environment. Because plastic is an artificially manufactured substance, humans need to be mindful about how it is disposed and produced.
Although the article was easy to understand, I think that it could have been better reinforced with statistics and facts. The vocabulary used and the logical flow of the article was very clear. However, the claims could have been backed up with further scientific proof to sound more credible. Statistics do not back up claims such as, “Some of the stuff has been blown off landfill sites that are close to the shore,” which weakens the article. If more factual information was incorporated, it would be beneficial to the article.
Shukman, David. "Plastic Oceans: What Do We Know?" BBC News. N.p., 01 Oct. 2015. Web. 01 Oct. 2015. <http://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-34414710>.
Wow! Great review, Audrey! So well done. You summarized everything clearly and seemingly with ease, covering all of the main points of the article without including any extraneous details. Not only that, but you established a very strong connection to how this issue affects human beings, something that many people struggle with in these current events. By directly discussing how these taxes would make people think twice about their plastic use, and also talking about how these harmful plastic pieces get into the seafood that we eat, I could quickly see how this issue affects me. Thirdly, your writing style was both extremely informative while remaining very easy to follow and read. This is an extremely hard quality to find in nonfiction writings, and hints at a real knack you have for writing intellectual reviews!
ReplyDeleteAud, it's so hard to think of any area which could benefit from improvement! But if anything, you may benefit from expanding on some of your claims, such as “although the new charge on plastic bags will contribute towards eliminating the threat that plastic poses on our oceans, much more has to be done globally to have any effect on the ocean.” Maybe give some examples of what else can be done, or explain more about the direct impact that fewer plastic bags could have any whd it’s not enough to greatly affect these plastic oceans. Secondly, some more outside information in general would have been beneficial. For example, how much is this tax? Is it so much so that it could put an imposition on lower class British, or too little that no one will recognize that it exists? Not only that, but what are other countries doing about this issue? It seems as if Britain is the first country to adopt such a policy; why is this so?
But on the whole, this review was astounding. Your writing and analysis blew me away. It taught me much about an environmental issue (plastic oceans), which I knew little about before. Also, by centering on a possible solution, it forced me to consider my own life and use of plastics and ponder what I can do to fix this issue. Overall, the review made me remember that we are in control of the earth, and are more than capable of being catalysts of positive change. This makes me want to take action! I’m so glad I chose this article; thanks, Audrey, for giving me such a great read!
Shukman, David. "Plastic Oceans: What Do We Know?" BBC News. N.p., 01 Oct. 2015. Web. 01 Oct. 2015. .
^^ sorry, for some reason the hyperlink is not showing up in my prior comment.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-34414710