It has just been discovered that there are "microbes living on floating pieces of plastic marine debris" that can affect the ocean ecosystem big time. Scientists have called this the "Platisphere-an ecological community of microbial organisms living on ocean plastic". With more than a thousand different species, the organisms located in this environment can act as huge threats to other marine animals. According to Tracy Miner who is an associate scientists at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution in Woods Hole, Massachusettes, "bacteria could acquire additional nutrients as they pass through the guts of the fish", only helping it thrive more and continue living in the Plastisphere. Researchers are emphasizing how important it is that we "reduce the impact of plastic pollution" and that "plastics manufacturers learn how to make their products so they degrade at an optimal rate". Studies are still being conducted as far as "how the plastic is colonized and how it interacts with other marine organisms". The fact that there has been so much pollution that scientists needed to come up with a name for the new ecosystem of plastic is ridiculous.
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