Enjoy a spot of golf whilst relaxing by the coast, or relish the swing from a boat deck? Ever lost the odd ball to the inky depths of the ocean in the process? Although it may seem inocuous, every stray golf ball out in the blue contributes to the considerable issue of plastic pollution.
Plastic debris, such as golf balls, does not usually biodegrade; instead it simply breaks up into ever smaller pieces. Even if it does degrade then its decomposition can release toxic chemicals into the marine environment. Much of the world’s plastic waste deposited in the oceans has become trapped in the North Pacific by swirling currents, covering an area reported to be more than double the size of Texas, forming what is now called the Great Pacific Garbage Patch.
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