Microplastics

• Prize
  Silver in Science/Other
• Photographer
  Kikoh Matsuura

Plastics, which are highly durable and can be easily produced at low cost, are used in every aspect of our lives. The total amount of plastic waste in the world's oceans today is estimated to be 150 million tons, with an estimated annual inflow of 8 million tons. Degraded, fragmented plastics are known as microplastics, which range from millimeters to nanometers in size, invisible to the eye. Unlike natural organic matter, plastics do not easily decompose and are likely to remain in the sea for nearly 1,000 years.