Brazil’s volcanic Trindade Island reportedly has been of significant interest to scientists for years, but newly discovered rocks made up of plastic debris concerns them.
You read that right! Melted plastic has fused with rocks on this Brazilian island. Hence, researchers say this proof of humanity’s influence on the Earth’s geological cycle, according to a report from Reuters.
Fernanda Avelar Santos, a geologist at the Federal University of Parana, and her team conducted tests and identified the plastic that fused with the rocks: “plastiglomerates.”
“This is new and terrifying at the same time, because pollution has reached geology,” Santos said via Reuters, adding, “We identified (the pollution) mainly comes from fishing nets, which is very common debris on Trinidade Island’s beaches. The (nets) are dragged by the marine currents and accumulate on the beach. When the temperature rises, this plastic melts and becomes embedded with the beach’s natural material.”
Trindade Island is regarded as a conservation spot for green turtles, according to Reuters. In fact, the only people that live there are a part of the Brazilian army.
Nevertheless, the discovery of plastic rocks on the island is alarming and speaks to humanity’s legacy on earth and how people have impacted ecosystems and geology, according to Santos.
“We talk so much about the Anthropocene, and this is it,” Santos continued. “The pollution, the garbage in the sea, and the plastic dumped incorrectly in the oceans is becoming geological material … preserved in the earth’s geological records.”