China news network, June 24, according to the United Nations website, the first United Nations Environment Assembly opened in Nairobi on June 23. The two reports released on the same day pointed out that a large amount of plastic waste in the ocean increasingly threatens the survival of Marine life and the development of tourism, fisheries and commerce, according to conservative estimates, plastic waste causes economic losses of up to 13 billion US dollars per year to Marine ecosystems.

The United Nations Environment Programme's Yearbook 2014 reviews the top 10 pressing environmental issues reported over the past decade, including plastic waste in the oceans. In the meantime, supported by unep, plastic disclosure project (thePlasticDisclosureProject) and the "true cost" (Trucost) jointly issued the "assessment of the value of plastic", the report found plastic consumer goods industry using the consumption of natural capital amount to 75 billion dollars a year.

The report shows that greenhouse gas emissions from the extraction and disposal of plastic raw materials consume more than 30% of natural capital, but Marine pollution is the largest downstream cost.

Plastic waste in the ocean comes from trash cans, poorly managed landfills, tourism and fishing activities. While some of the material sinks to the bottom of the ocean, other plastic waste floats long distances in ocean currents, polluting coastlines and accumulating in large quantities in the ocean.

Plastic waste wreaks havoc on the natural environment: ingested by Marine life such as sea turtles can cause illness or death, plastic can entangles creatures such as dolphins and whales, and damage important habitats such as coral reefs. In addition, plastic waste can also produce chemical pollution, and plastic debris can cause invasive species and damage tourism and fishing in many countries, such as polluting beaches and damaging fishing gear.

The UNEP Yearbook 2014 pays special attention to microplastics, which are plastic particles with a diameter of 5 mm that are produced when plastic debris is made or produced. Microplastics can easily be mistaken for food and ingested by Marine life. Microplastics are increasingly being used directly in consumer products such as toothpaste, hairspray and facial cleansers. These are difficult to filter through sewage treatment processes and end up in rivers, lakes and oceans. Microbiomes gathered on microplastics have been found in many parts of the North Atlantic. The microplastics can spread harmful microbes, pathogens and species such as algae.

UN Under-Secretary-General Achim Steiner, Executive director of UNEP, said that plastics play a very important role in modern life, but we cannot ignore the environmental impact of plastic use. The reports show that reducing, recycling and redesigning plastic products can bring a number of green economic benefits: reduced economic losses to Marine ecosystems, tourism and fisheries, especially in developing countries; Reducing reputational risk for businesses while saving them money and opening up opportunities for innovation.

The Valuing Plastics report also found that the consumer goods industry could be saved $4 billion a year through good plastics management, such as plastic recycling. Andrew Russell, director of the

Plastic Disclosure Project, stressed that the studies reveal the need for companies to think about their plastic footprint in the same way they think about their carbon, water and forest footprints.

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