Macduff aquarium encourages wearing of reusable masks to reduce plastic waste
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Macduff Marine Aquarium has urged people to consider the environment when choosing their face coverings.
The public has been encouraged to wear reusable masks rather than disposable ones when they have to, in shops and public transport for example, to help in the battle against plastic pollution.
The aquarium's call has come after a study by scientists at University College London outlined that if every person in the UK used one single-use mask each day for a year, an extra 66,000 tonnes of contaminated plastic waste would be created and have 10 times more climate change impact than using reusable masks.
Learning officer at the aquarium Marie Dare said: "This increased waste coupled with improper disposal issues means we are looking at a major increase in plastic pollution entering our oceans.
"Disposable face masks are made of layers of plastic that never decompose, they just fragment into smaller and smaller pieces, and these microplastics persist in the environment forever.
"They enter the food chain, working their way all the way to the top. These plastics leech chemicals that can now be detected in human blood samples.
"Science is only now trying to discover what impact these chemicals may have on our health.
"Before they fragment, floating masks resemble jellyfish and so can be eaten by sea creatures, get lodged in their digestive system and cause serious health problems or even death in a whole host of animals from sea turtles to sharks and whales.
"We want to encourage people to use reusable masks where appropriate to cut down on the amount of single use plastic waste entering the environment and to make people aware that there are always alternatives to disposable single use items."
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