Plastic rocks formed by pollution alter the Colombian Caribbean coast

Plastic rocks formed by tons of waste thrown into the sea that melt due to the heat and merge with natural sediments are altering coastal areas of the Caribbean Colombia where contamination by this petroleum product grows.

The researchers of this phenomenon, the geologists Nelson Rangel, from the Universidad del Atlántico, and Felipe Lamus, from the Universidad del Norte, lead the team that discovered the appearance of these plastic rocks, something unthinkable just a few years ago for science and especially for geology.

In the Galerazamba area, 75 kilometers from Barranquilla, where the research is being carried out, the team led by Rangel and Lamus found two types of plastic rocks: plastiglomerates and quartz plastirenenes, as well as two types of soil: antrosuelo (anthrosol) and plastic soil (plasticsol), all products of contamination.

For Rangel, doctor in geology “The high contamination by plastic that is evident with the formation of new rocks is the least of the problems, since the most serious is when microplastics and nanoplastics are consumed by fish, shellfish and all kinds of animals, they enter their organisms and are then consumed by humans.

“The pollution Plastic on the Colombian Caribbean coast originates mainly from spills, activities on the beach and activities in the ocean and in waterwaysExplain.

In this sense, Rangel adds that the Magdalena River basin, which crosses the country from south to north, “is an important contributor of microplastics to the Caribbean Sea, releasing 2,100 tons annually due to the concentration of municipalities and population in the area.”

worrisome future

What Rangel raised shows a worrying vision of the future of the seas in the short term since, according to data from the World Economic Forum cited by Unesco, if measures are not taken, by 2050 there will be more plastic than fish in the oceans.

“It is of little use to carry out campaigns to clean the beaches because in a few hours they will be full of polluting waste. Actions to mitigate the impact of pollution are outweighed by actions that contaminate”he added.

Rangel and Lamus emphasize in their research the omnipresent nature of plastic pollution in the “Anthropocene”, a concept that they apply to the repercussions on climate and biodiversity due to the accumulation of greenhouse gases and the excessive consumption of natural resources by the humans.

The discovery of new rock formations, deposits and artifacts that contain significant amounts of plastic in their composition is “a testament to the enduring impact of human activity on our planet and its geosphere.”

“Plastics are already part of the rock cycle, that is, our (human) footprint is already present in geology”points out Lamus, a research professor from the Department of Physics and Geosciences at Uninorte, who was mainly in charge of collecting and analyzing samples, with the support of José Brito and Rubén Beltrán, from the Geology program.

multiple waste

Lamus explained that in addition to the two new types of rocks and soils, the research “put into evidence two types of altered plastic: pyroplastics and plasticrusts”and a series of petrified residues “found near human settlements, such as remnants of garbage, waste, and construction materials such as bricks, concrete, and asphalt.”

The research by Rangel and Lamus, entitled “Decoding plastic pollution in the geological record: a baseline study on the Caribbean coast of Colombia, northern South America”identifies polyesters, high-density polyethylene, and alkyl acrylate or methacrylate copolymers as the main polymers that form these rocks.

According to data from the UN, the global production of plastic exceeds 400 million tons per year, affecting more than 800 marine species and endangering the balance of life on the planet, while in Colombia 1.25 million are produced. tons per year.

Source: EFE