Marine debris plastic in the amounts of 50,000 to150,000 metric tons is found on the shores of Japan each year and 70% of which is comprised of PS. Drift and stranded PS is thought to generate SO in the ocean.To clarify what other chemicals may be generated from PS in addition to SO, on site extraction of water were conducted. SO, comprised primarily of ST, was basically the same in composition as that of purified PS based on the results of low temperature decomposition and commercial PS extraction result. It thus follows from these findings that SO from PS are a new source of chemical contamination in the North Pacific Ocean.  Global chemical contamination generated from PS decomposition/ellution in the ocean is of course hidden to ordinary human observation and will certainly give rise to new sources of contamination that will persist long into the future.

New global contamination generated from plastics

246th National Meeting (2013)

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