A new study confirms that the buildup of “plastic pollution” can cause water levels to rise by up to one meter during the first hour of a flood.
The study, published in Britain’s The Guardian newspaper, concluded that more than two hundred million people are facing more intense and frequent flooding due to plastic pollution clogging sewage systems.
Of the number mentioned above, there are about forty-one million, who are children, the elderly and the disabled.
Specifically, plastic pollution in slums in many low- and middle-income countries is exacerbating flooding by blocking drainage networks, leading to health issues such as cholera.
In addition to the above, parts of Cameroon, Nigeria, Democratic Republic of Congo, Ghana, Bangladesh and Indonesia have been severely inundated with plastic waste.
Three-quarters of the most vulnerable people live in Southeast Asia and the Pacific region, and unless decisive action is taken, experts say, this problem will only get worse.
The threat of plastic is expected to triple by 2060, as only 9% of this waste is recycled globally.
As a result, experts are urging governments to begin negotiations on a legally binding plastics treaty, to consider helping these hardest hit communities.
A new study published by the British newspaper The Guardian has reported that plastic pollution is causing a high rate of flooding due to the obstruction of the functioning of sewage systems.
The study warned against further plastic pollution as it causes the spread of serious diseases affecting human health.
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