Plastic pollution in the Mediterranean sea

High school (ages 12+)
Environment & Earth

Name:

Date:

Step 1 · Read the article

Open the article and read it at the level above. Then answer the questions below in your own words.

https://smallwhale.org/articles/plastic-pollution-in-the-mediterranean-sea

Write what each word means, using the article.

Do not copy the article. Write two things you learned, the way you would explain them to a friend.

Answers below are taken from the article’s stored facts, so they match what the student read.

1. Where is the Plastic pollution in the Mediterranean sea?Semi-enclosed sea connecting Europe, Africa, and Asia
2. How many people live in the Plastic pollution in the Mediterranean sea?Over 450 million people inhabit the Mediterranean coastlines
3. How big is the Plastic pollution in the Mediterranean sea?Approximately 2.5 million square kilometers (965,000 square miles)
4. What is the annual plastic influx?Estimated 570,000 metric tons
5. What is the microplastic concentration?Higher than the global average
6. What is happening to the Mediterranean Sea with plastic?The Mediterranean Sea is getting a lot of plastic, like 570,000 metric tons each year, which is about 33,800 plastic bottles every minute. This makes the water and the sea floor full of tiny plastic pieces called microplastics.

Microplastics: Plastic particles less than 5mm in size, resulting from the fragmentation of larger items or manufactured as microbeads.
Marine Ecosystem: The interconnected community of organisms and their physical environment within a marine setting, crucial for biodiversity.
Transboundary Pollution: Environmental pollution that originates in one country but spreads to affect another, necessitating international cooperation.
Blue Economy: The sustainable use of ocean resources for economic growth, improved livelihoods, and jobs while preserving the health of ocean ecosystems.