(ANSA) – BRASILIA, OCTOBER 17 – Brazil is the largest polluter in Latin America (and the eighth country in the world) when it comes to the disposal of plastic in the oceans.
1.3 million tons (8% of the total) are dumped every year, according to the report “Fragments of destruction: the impact of plastic on Brazilian marine biodiversity“, published on its website by the NGO Oceana.
“The plastic polluting our seas comes to us because of a production and disposal model that urgently needs to be replaced,” Oceana director general, oceanologist Ademilson Zamboni, said in the report. The impact of this pollution on ecosystems and human nutrition has been observed in 200 marine species, 85% of which are at risk of extinction. Of these animals, one in 10 died due to problems such as malnutrition and reduced immune defenses following exposure to chemical compounds harmful to the species, the Oceana report states. (HANDLE).