Perception of reality: why do we pass by marine plastic waste as an invisible problem?
Celebrating this year’s World Ocean Day (June 8th 2022), BONETHICA took an opportunity for a trip to the Baltic Sea beaches of Curonian Split, Lithuania to find possible arguments why we pass by marine plastic waste as an invisible problem. After our investigation and scientific research we got insight into how a slight change in perception can reveal the reality of plastic pollution in aquatic ecosystems.
It’s a fact. Almost four quarters of Earth’s surface is covered in salt water. This means, oceans play a very important part in the health of our habitat. Our oceans provide us with 70 per cent of the oxygen we breathe, a few billions of people rely on it for primary food sources as well as countless fish, mammals, plants, birds, and more, they also regulate Earth’s temperatures, absorbing heat from the Sun and spreading it more evenly around our planet. We know the calming effects of the sound of waves, sand and sun makes us more relaxed. Research finds that spending time at the beach is good for your wellbeing and those who live in such an environment have a better general and mental health. Therefore, we could argue that people associate the beach with positive experience, beautiful scenery and ease. However, plastic waste in aquatic ecosystems is a crucial subject. Plastics represent around 70 per cent of waste in the oceans, accordingly the same percentage of plastic litter exists in the Baltic sea. Being aware of these heartbreaking facts, we have travelled near the Baltic Sea to a wild beach of the Curonian Split to do an investigation for our research. We hate to break it to you but our fifty steps of coastline walk has aligned with many global reports…
According to the State of the Baltic Sea, between fifty and three hundred litter items are found every hundred meters of the Baltic Sea beaches. We found 40 plastic items and additionally about a few dozen very small plastic particles in approx. fifty meters of the coastline.
The list of the top ten most prevalent macro-plastic items found in the world’s coastal and freshwater environments matches ours. We can testify because we found caps and lids, plastic bags, plastic and glass bottles, straws and many food wrappers / polyethylene particles, plastic ropes and strings. Not top listed items: plastic containers, helium balloon and its particles, plastic medicine packets and a lighter.
We raised ourselves a question: how our individual and common perception influence our understanding of the reality of marine plastic pollution?
Gregory’s top-down theory: psychologist Richard Gregory (1970) argued that perception is a constructive process which relies on top-down processing. He estimated that by the time our visual experience reaches the brain 90% of information is lost. Therefore, this creates an effect where we make sense of the environment by interpreting the reality depending on our sensory data base, our beliefs, opinion and memories.
Neuroscientist Dr. Patrick Cavanagh is a leader in research in visual neuroscience and perception. He explains, that every time we experience a stimulus, our brain responds based on experience and if there are stimuli that are not perfectly clear, we fill in the gaps with our priors and presumptions. Studies also show that perceived risk can drive behavior change. Moreover, each individual has his or her own perception of reality, leaving to believe everyone has their own mind constructed view of reality.
The same spot in the Curonian Split coastline but reality shown with three different perceptions:
Beautiful coastline, naturally looking rural beach.
There’s something blue in the sand (a part of the plastic bottle lid).
Marine plastic pollution. Between sand, wood particles and dead insects there lies tiny plastic pieces that came from the Baltic sea.
The scientific research we described, gives us hope that could explain why we genuinely one - pass by, two - not really notice, three - not act to remove the marine plastic waste. Of course, you’d think it’s hard not to notice the trash on the beach when it’s obvious but in actuality we don’t always do something about it. The same way someone can throw away litter outdoors and leave it, the same way we can walk past and not notice it, or see it and pick it up because it bothers us.
Possibly, it’s hard for us to understand the ocean crisis because of the difficulty to relate. We hear about it but don’t see it enough or it doesn’t affect us directly that we have to face it. Unless we educate ourselves voluntarily and connect with nature, we’d be creating sensory data for our brain to respond later on accordingly. It’s very hard to imagine the scale of plastic waste just by the narrative for our so much vision dependent brain.
Another problem is inability to notice coastal litter. We associate the coastal views with the beautiful and peaceful environment seen on social media, films and magazines, daily or weekly cleaned public beaches. This experience shapes the perception of reality to an illusion form, when we take a beach walk in a relaxed manner, we see the overall view as the reflection of the attractive images we have in mind from our past, leaving out the data that’s not familiar. It becomes easier to walk past the tiny plastics and small trash without consciously registering the problem. It sort of becomes an invisible matter.
The research has also mentioned how our sensory data can create habits. Public litter picking is not associated with something we do or are prepared to do on a daily basis walking down the street or in nature. It’s a job someone is paid to do, or an activity seen as a special event you take part in for the Ocean Day, or other nature themed celebration. It’s not a norm in our society and we don’t hesitate much to act on it, even if our brain data base lets us get bothered to notice it in the first place.
”The whole 50 kilometer coastline can be full of micro and macro plastics because wherever we stepped there were tiny bits of hardly noticeable plastics and also, more obvious small plastic items.”
Bonethica tried coming to the beach with the right mindset, observing the environment and all the small details around us. We tried and once we did, it clicked, the whole 50 kilometer coastline can be full of micro and macro plastics because wherever we stepped there were tiny bits of hardly noticeable plastics and also, more obvious small plastic items. And the rural coastline we visited is not the only problem, the entire aquatic ecosystem is polluted with an estimate of 19-23 million metric tons of plastic each year.
Straight away we thought of the animals that we have seen: a variety of fish and jellyfish, seals and seagulls. Oceans hold 15% of Earth’s species, while freshwater - 5% and the entire marine life has very high biodiversity. Aquatic ecosystem has to deal with all of this trash floating or buried in the ocean ground. Each year, the deaths of more than a million seabirds and marine animals combined is linked to plastic trash. 81 out of 123 marine mammal species are known to have eaten or been entangled in plastic. It’s estimated that 56 per cent of the planet’s whale, dolphin and porpoise species have consumed plastic. Moreover, one of the items we found, you should definitely avoid flying-free in the air is a helium balloon. Helium balloons, their strings and ties often end up snaring birds or aquatic wildlife, or get swallowed when the animals mistake the latex or foil for food. Some states of the US and Australia are now already banning the release of helium balloons.
Another worrying fact is that there are concerns that microplastics are a health threat not only for wildlife but for humans as well, as it is found in seafood and sea salt, and research shows that microplastics are present in 90 per cent of table salt as well.
How can businesses and organisations help shape the right change?
Implement plastic-free, recycled-plastic and no single-use plastic policy in your business for products and packaging. Avoid materials that release micro plastics.
Start a recycling program in your office (paper, plastic, glass, compost) without general waste bins.
Introduce customer’s sustainable consumption opportunities in your business strategy.
Provide employees with clean water sources, reusable water bottles, cutlery and cups, and straws. Bring your own food to work, or the multi-purpose food storage box you’ll be taking away your lunch.
Organise or take part in educational events about the Earth’s nature, pollution and climate crisis to spread the information and form the true perception of reality.
Support and collaborate with change makers and non-profit organisations.
Changing your mindset is the key because whatever measures others will take, it will come down to each individual's consciousness and relationship with nature. Words and facts only come and go until you actually take part in and engage in experiences. These types of tangible activities for everyone to come across, can shake your brain, inspire more questions and give you a “reality check” very quickly. This is exactly why Bonethica was born as a holistic brand development house where we do not only look at numbers and quicker ways but a healthy experience of the business model to be able to turn it into a trustworthy and positive brand. We believe the future agencies will be of that nature, so that every entrepreneur who is starting up, will be conscious of taking responsibility for the planet to continue thriving.