Scientists are working hard to understand the impact of microplastic pollution in the environment and in human bodies. The research requires identifying and analyzing types of microplastics particles, which can range from 1 nanometer to 5 millimeters in size. Leonard Ortiz/MediaNews Group/Orange County Register/Getty Images hide caption
Some of the reusable items to avoid single use plastics. Zayrha Rodriguez/NPR hide caption
Researchers have detected microplastics in human testicles. Volodymyr Zakharov/Getty Images hide caption
Trash collectors from Marsabit Safi Services offload waste at the Dadach Boshe dump. Even though Kenyan banned single-use plastic bags in 2016, they're still piling up at the dump and blowing off to litter the landscape and bodies of water. Scovian Lillian for NPR hide caption
Researchers found that plastic debris sits atop almost 92% of the reefs they studied, including some of the most remote and uninhabited ones. Here in Oman, plastic floats past an otherwise healthy reef. Tane Sinclair-Taylor hide caption
A piece of plastic debris that's been colonized by both costal barnacles (pink and striped) and a gooseneck barnacle from the open ocean. Linsey Haram/SERC Marine Invasions Lab hide caption
Scientists hope the larvae of the darkling beetle — nicknamed "superworms" — might solve the world's trash crisis thanks to their uncanny ability to eat polystyrene. The University of Queensland hide caption
Tower Bridge over The River Thames and, in the distance, the secondary central business district of Canary Wharf are pictured as the sun sets in London. Justin Tallis/AFP via Getty Images hide caption
In addition to large plastic trash, researchers estimate that more than 21 million metric tons of tiny plastic debris are floating below the Atlantic Ocean's surface. Michael O'Neill/Science Source hide caption
East West Market in Vancouver, British Columbia, offered single-use plastic bags with embarrassing slogans to encourage customers to utilize reusable bags. Courtesy of East West Market hide caption
The deep ocean is filled with sea creatures like giant larvaceans. They're actually the size of tadpoles, but they're surrounded by a yard-wide bubble of mucus that collects food — and plastic. Courtesy of the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute hide caption
Ocean Cleanup's System 001 was towed out of the San Francisco Bay on Sept. 8, 2018. JOSH EDELSON/AFP/Getty Images hide caption
Microplastics found along Lake Ontario by Rochman's team Chris Joyce/NPR hide caption
Waste engineer Jenna Jambeck of the University of Georgia surveys plastic waste in a southeast Asian village, where it will be recycled to make raw material for more plastic products. Jambeck advises Asian governments on how to keep plastic trash out of waterways. Courtesy of Amy Brooks hide caption
As cities and companies — including Starbucks — move to oust straws in a bid to reduce pollution, people with disabilities say they're losing access to a necessary, lifesaving tool. Thn Rocn Khosit Rath Phachr Sukh/EyeEm via Getty Images hide caption