Context: Recently, a new study published in Nature Communications has estimated that the amount of microplastic pollution in the Atlantic Ocean is 11.6-21.1 million tonnes.
Key findings of the Study

• It showed that the pollution from plastic, especially smaller microplastics, have reached the oceans and some of the most remote corners of the Arctic.
• It depicted that there is uncertainty about the magnitude of plastic pollution in marine environments and it cannot be exactly said how much pollution does plastic, especially microplastics cause.
• The scientists studied pollution of the Atlantic Ocean caused by three types of plastics i.e. polyethylene, polypropylene and polystyrene.
• It estimated that based on plastic waste generation trends from 1950-2015 and considering that the Atlantic Ocean has received 0.3-0.8 per cent of the global plastic waste for 65 years, the Atlantic waters could hold 17-47 million tonnes of plastic waste.

About Microplastics 

• They are plastic debris smaller than 5mm in length, or about the size of a sesame seed.
• They come from a variety of sources, most common is when larger pieces of plastic degrade into smaller pieces.
• The pollution from plastic, especially smaller microplastics, have reached the oceans and even some of the most remote corners of the Arctic Ocean.

How does plastic reach the oceans?
There are multiple pathways including:

• Riverine and atmospheric transport from coastal and inland areas
• Illegal dumping activities
• Direct-at-sea littering from shipping
• Fishing and aquaculture activities.

As per International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), at least 8 million tonnes of plastic end up in the oceans every year and makes up about 80% of all marine debris from surface waters to deep-sea sediments.
Why is plastic pollution harmful?

• Plastic can take hundreds to thousands of years to decompose depending on the type of plastic and where it has been dumped.
• In the oceans, it impacts marine life, ocean health, coastal tourism and even human health.
• Marine animals such as whales, seabirds and turtles ingest plastic and often suffocate.
• Smaller plastic particles are easier to sink to greater ocean depths and some marine species such as zooplanktons show preferential ingestion of smaller particles.
• The marine plastic pollution via sea food is reaches the food chain and harmful for humans too. Example: Microplastics have been found in tap water, beer and even salt, which can be carcinogenic. 

Atlantic Ocean

• The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world’s oceans, with an area of about 106,460,000 sq. kms.
• It covers approximately 20% of Earth’s surface and about 29% of its water surface area.
• The Ocean occupies an elongated, S-shaped basin extending longitudinally between Europe and Africa to the east, and the Americas to the west.
• It is connected in the north to the Arctic Ocean, to the Pacific Ocean in the southwest, the Indian Ocean in the southeast, and the Southern Ocean in the south.
• The Equatorial Counter Current subdivides it into the Northern Atlantic Ocean and the Southern Atlantic Ocean.