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From macaques to crabs, wildlife faces threat from face masks

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Sam Reeves, Agence France-Presse

<div class="embed-wrap"><figure data-feedback="fb:likes,fb:comments"><img src="http://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/2021/reuters/01/12/waste.jpg"/><figcaption>In this file photo taken on May 13, 2020, Gary Stokes, founder of the environmental group Oceans Asia, poses with discarded face masks he found on a beach in the residential area of Discovery Bay on the outlying Lantau island in Hong Kong. The surge in mask wearing during the coronavirus pandemic has thrown up a potent new threat to wildlife due to people thoughtlessly discarding the protective gear in massive quantities, environmentalists warn. <em>Anthony Wallace, AFP</em></figcaption></figure></div><p>KUALA LUMPUR - Masks that helped save lives during the coronavirus pandemic are proving a deadly hazard for wildlife, with birds and marine creatures ensnared in the staggering number of discarded facial coverings littering animal habitats.</p><p>Single-use surgical masks have been found scattered around pavements, waterways and beaches worldwide since countries began mandating their use in public places to slow the pandemic&#x27;s spread.</p><p>Worn once, the thin protective materials can take hundreds of years to decompose.</p><p>&quot;Face masks aren&#x27;t going away any time soon -- but when we throw them away, these items can harm the environment and the animals who share our planet,&quot; Ashley Fruno of animal rights group PETA told AFP.</p><ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/overseas/07/23/20/single-use-masks-coronavirus-waste-end-up-polluting-ocean">Single-use masks, coronavirus waste end up polluting ocean</a></li></ul><p>Macaques have been spotted chewing the straps off old and tossed-aside masks in the hills outside Malaysia&#x27;s capital Kuala Lumpur -- a potential choking hazard for the diminutive monkeys.</p><p>And in an incident that captured headlines in Britain, a gull was rescued by the RSPCA in the city of Chelmsford after its legs became tangled in the straps of a disposable mask for up to a week.</p><p>The animal welfare charity was alerted after the bird was spotted, motionless but still alive, and they took it to a wildlife hospital for treatment before its release.</p><p>&quot;It&#x27;s clear the mask was there for some time and the elastic straps had tightened around his legs as his joints were swollen and sore,&quot; said RSPCA inspector Adam Jones.</p><figure class="op-interactive"><iframe height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/sRxndo9PATY?enablejsapi=1" width="560"></iframe></figure><div class="iwantbar">Watch more in <a href="//www.iwantv.com.ph/">iWantv</a> or <a href="//tfc.tv/">TFC.tv</a></div><div><strong>CUT OFF MASK STRAPS</strong></div><p>The biggest impact may be in the water, with green groups alarmed at the flood of used masks, latex gloves and other protective gear finding their way into already contaminated seas and rivers.</p><p>More than 1.5 billion masks made their way into the world&#x27;s oceans last year, accounting for around 6,200 extra tons of marine plastic pollution, according to environmental group OceansAsia. </p><p>Already there are signs that masks are worsening threats to marine life.</p><p>Conservationists in Brazil found one inside the stomach of a penguin after its body washed up on a beach, while a dead pufferfish was discovered caught inside another off the coast of Miami.</p><p>French campaigners Operation Mer Propre found a dead crab ensnared in a mask in a saltwater lagoon near the Mediterranean in September.</p><p>Masks and gloves are &quot;particularly problematic&quot; for sea creatures, says George Leonard, chief scientist from US-based NGO Ocean Conservancy.</p><p>&quot;When those plastics break down in the environment, they form smaller and smaller particles,&quot; he told AFP.</p><p>Those particles then enter the food chain and impact entire ecosystems, he added. </p><p>There has been a shift towards greater use of reusable cloth masks as the pandemic has worn on, but many are still opting for the lighter single-use varieties.</p><p>Campaigners have urged people to bin them properly and snip the straps to reduce the risk of animals becoming ensnared. </p><p>OceansAsia has also called on governments to increase fines for littering and encourage the use of washable masks. </p><div><strong>© Agence France-Presse</strong></div>

<p>Masks that helped save lives during the coronavirus pandemic are proving a deadly hazard for wildlife, with birds and marine creatures ensnared in the staggering number of discarded facial coverings littering animal habitats.<br /> </p>

Masks that helped save lives during the coronavirus pandemic are proving a deadly hazard for wildlife, with birds and marine creatures ensnared in the staggering number of discarded facial coverings littering animal habitats.

From macaques to crabs, wildlife faces threat from face masks

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From macaques to crabs, wildlife faces threat from face masks

Sam Reeves,

Agence France-Presse

Published Jan 12, 2021 12:51 PM PHT

Read More:

ANC

face masks

wildlife

environment

pollution

macaques

crabs

animal habitats

OceansAsia

PETA

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