There's a new object polluting the worlds oceans, Liz Kennedy explains. Since the start of the pandemic, we've been told many times to do our part to help stop the spread of COVID-19 by wearing a mask. Aside from seeing them on faces, masks are washing ashore from our oceans.
Dr. Teale Bondaroff, director of research for OceansAsia tells 6 News Richmond, about six weeks after COVID hit Hong Kong, a lot of masks were showing up.
Many are made with polypropylene, which Bondaroff describes as thin fibers of plastic. He says once plastic enters the marine environment, it’s very difficult to move.
Of the estimated 52 billion masks manufactured globally in 2020, it's believed 1.56 billion will enter our oceans this year.