the fish is of great concern because the small pieces of plastic may become part of the
food chain as a result of bioaccumulation and biomagnification in higher organisms
that feed on these smaller fish (Sigler 2014).
Humans
Sea food is considered a delicacy around the globe and people like to eat different
types of sea foods like lobster, crabs, oysters and fish. Almost 19% of the global
population depend on sea food in order to meet their animal protein intake
(Beaumont et al. 2019). Human beings hold the highest level in food web and
trophic level hence they consume plastics indirectly for example by consuming
seafood more commonly shellfish and small fish which are eaten as a whole
including their gut on the other hand larger fish has more flesh hence human
consume only their meat and are therefore less affected by them. It has been
estimated and evaluated through experiments that nanoplastics have more mobility
rates in the tissues of living organisms as compare to other types hence their larger
surface to volume ratio increases their concentration in the tissue causing mass
concerns of health and reproduction if such sea food is taken which ingest
nanoplastics, humans can damage the overall general health with some unknown
and uncharacterized effects. Plastic nanoparticles are widely distributed in marine
environment with relatively unknown sources of origin. As a result of plastic
pollution in aquatic reservoirs as indicated by a large number of studies human
beings have to be conscious about their love for the delicious seafood (Rhodes
2018).
3.5 Measurement of Water Pollution
In order to measure the water pollution chemical, physical and biological methods
can be used. In the physical testing process, solid concentrations, temperature,
turbidity, color, odor and taste are measured. Fresh water has no taste and odor but
sea water has a bitter taste due to higher concentration of different salts, the presence
of any plastic on any level can be detected using physical tests, for this purpose
samples from different sources are compared with standard samples for their physical characteristics any difference or variation from the normal limits indicates the
contamination level. Color can also help to physically judge the samples. Turbidity
is the haziness or cloudiness of a liquid caused by large number of particles present
in the liquid, hence if the water is turbid it gives indication that water is polluted
while clear water absorbs light and is free of pollutants. Chemical methods use,
analytical chemistry principal for testing the concentrations of different pollutants in
water samples, it can also determine the types and qualities of such contaminants. If
the concentration of chemicals like industrial dyes, heavy metals like lead, chromium, or plastic is too high it can affect aquatic life or those who consume it for
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101
food chain as a result of bioaccumulation and biomagnification in higher organisms
that feed on these smaller fish (Sigler 2014).
Humans
Sea food is considered a delicacy around the globe and people like to eat different
types of sea foods like lobster, crabs, oysters and fish. Almost 19% of the global
population depend on sea food in order to meet their animal protein intake
(Beaumont et al. 2019). Human beings hold the highest level in food web and
trophic level hence they consume plastics indirectly for example by consuming
seafood more commonly shellfish and small fish which are eaten as a whole
including their gut on the other hand larger fish has more flesh hence human
consume only their meat and are therefore less affected by them. It has been
estimated and evaluated through experiments that nanoplastics have more mobility
rates in the tissues of living organisms as compare to other types hence their larger
surface to volume ratio increases their concentration in the tissue causing mass
concerns of health and reproduction if such sea food is taken which ingest
nanoplastics, humans can damage the overall general health with some unknown
and uncharacterized effects. Plastic nanoparticles are widely distributed in marine
environment with relatively unknown sources of origin. As a result of plastic
pollution in aquatic reservoirs as indicated by a large number of studies human
beings have to be conscious about their love for the delicious seafood (Rhodes
2018).
3.5 Measurement of Water Pollution
In order to measure the water pollution chemical, physical and biological methods
can be used. In the physical testing process, solid concentrations, temperature,
turbidity, color, odor and taste are measured. Fresh water has no taste and odor but
sea water has a bitter taste due to higher concentration of different salts, the presence
of any plastic on any level can be detected using physical tests, for this purpose
samples from different sources are compared with standard samples for their physical characteristics any difference or variation from the normal limits indicates the
contamination level. Color can also help to physically judge the samples. Turbidity
is the haziness or cloudiness of a liquid caused by large number of particles present
in the liquid, hence if the water is turbid it gives indication that water is polluted
while clear water absorbs light and is free of pollutants. Chemical methods use,
analytical chemistry principal for testing the concentrations of different pollutants in
water samples, it can also determine the types and qualities of such contaminants. If
the concentration of chemicals like industrial dyes, heavy metals like lead, chromium, or plastic is too high it can affect aquatic life or those who consume it for
3 Remediation of Water Pollution by Plastics
101