Scientists Say Cleaning Plastic Out Of Our Oceans Could Do More Harm Than Good

SEATTLE (Scrap Monster): Plastics tend to break down into microplastics rather than biodegrade (though there are biodegradable plastics as well). Another issue is the amount of plastic entering the oceans: approximately 11 million tons annually, according to Surfers Against Sewage. All of this waste can cause significant harm to the various species that reside in and around the waters, and to the delicate ecosystems of which they're a vital part. Curiously, though, some scientists believe that the global effort to remove polluting plastic from our oceans is actually rather counter-productive. In the specific case of one type of ocean dweller, namely the neuston.

This is not simply the name of a species, but of a whole variety of critters defined by Britannica as a "group of organisms found on top of or attached to the underside of the surface film of water." This encompasses a range of life forms from whirligig beetles to the likes of worms and the Pacific man-of-war. Though the species that make up the neuston vary a lot depending on the specific area, it's a critical part of the ecosystem. A part, moreover, that seems to have learned to live with (and even within) the accumulations of plastic such as the infamous Great Pacific Garbage Patch.

For this reason, disturbing and removing all that plastic could harm the neuston too. Marine biologist Rebecca Helm is one expert who has advocated for caution in conservation efforts, stating, as quoted by Earth: "Some of these cleanup projects have the potential to get rid of an entire ecosystem that we do not understand and that we may never be able to restore."

Apex predators like the polar bear and orca, two talismans of worldwide conservation efforts, have crucial places at the top of their respective food chains. It's fortunate, then, that scientists have discovered a secret of polar bears. This isn't to say that the animals they eat are any less important, though, nor are seemingly "insignificant" life forms like the insects that make up the neuston.

In fact, marine biologist Rebecca Helm writes for PLOS Biology, lifeforms that are part of the neuston include "keystone organisms like the golden seaweed Sargassum that makes up the Sargasso Sea." Another important point is that "many ecologically and economically important fish species live as or rely upon neuston." Whether from the perspective of conservation, financial interest, or its unique place in the gray area of importance to both land and sea ecosystems, there's no denying the importance of the neuston. Even so, it's poorly understood. Professor Kylie Pitt of Griffith University explained, The Guardian reports, that this is because its "transient nature makes it difficult to study. You'll see large numbers of jellyfish or bluebottles and then you won't be able to find them again."

The neuston is an underexplored enigma in science, but there are suggestions that some such organisms can use the ocean's plastics. An October 2012 Biology Letters study by Miriam C. Goldstein et al., for instance, finds that water striders may use microplastics as egg-laying surfaces, thereby increasing numbers. Neuston drifts with the currents, just as plastic does, raising concerns that they could accumulate naturally. This raises concerns that efforts to collect plastic may also remove neustonic populations.

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