Microplastics – these are small particles of plastic whose size does not exceed 5 mm. Although invisible to the naked eye, these particles pose a serious threat to the environment and human health. One of the main problems with microplastics is that they accumulate in nature and end up in ecosystems, including beaches. As beautiful as these coastal landscapes look, they pose an invisible threat.
At first glance, the sand on the beach looks clean and safe, but even there microplastics find their place. It accumulates in the sand layers, sometimes deep below the surface. The sources can be numerous – particles from disintegrating plastic objects, cosmetic products, synthetic fabrics or even microplastics caught from the sea. The release of these small particles into the environment causes serious environmental problems.
Animals ingest microplastics thinking they are food, leading to a build-up of toxins in their bodies. Microplastics can thus enter the food chain, eventually reaching us humans. In addition, microplastics also affect soil and water quality, disrupting natural ecological processes.
During our last summer camp we organised a workshop that aimed to show how widespread microplastics are in the sand. With this, we wanted to give the participants the opportunity to understand the problem visually and learn about the methods to study this threat.
The workshop started with a short introduction about what microplastics are and how they affect the environment. Participants were then divided into small groups and given a task – to explore a small section of sand. We drew a square about 1 square meter in size and each group began to carefully explore the sand to find microscopic pieces of plastic.
The results were alarming. In this small square, participants found different types of microplastic particles – tiny colored fragments that were once part of larger plastic objects, tiny fibers from synthetic clothing, and even microspheres from cosmetic products.
What at first appeared to be ordinary sand turned out to be contaminated with microplastics. The workshop showed us the importance of paying attention to these small details that can easily go unnoticed. This experience awakened in the participants a desire to fight against plastic pollution and to participate in more beach clean-up initiatives.
It’s important for each of us to be part of the solution – to reduce plastic use, participate in clean-up campaigns and inform others about the harm we are doing to nature with this invisible but dangerous enemy.
