Easter Island’s fight against plastic pollution: a call to protect paradise

Easter Island is a critical point for the accumulation of plastic and microplastics which are compromising marine animals and consequently also the health of the inhabitants

Easter Island is a breathtakingly beautiful island in the middle of the southern Pacific Ocean, which is suffering due to a powerful environmental crisis because of plastic pollution. Due to the special position of the island, the ocean currents transport huge quantities of waste, mainly coming from Australia, South America, and the fishing industry, that are critically important for it to be a hot spot of plastic and microplastic concentration.

“Most of the waste are not from the local community”

Easter Island, also called Rapa Nui, receives approximately 50 times more plastic in its coasts compared to those on mainland Chile. Moiko Pakomio is a marine biologist who works for the local government and was adamant that much of the waste that ends up on the island’s shores does not come from the local community.

A lot of these wastes come from fishing vessels releasing plastic to the sea. The same waste, due to the movement of the ocean currents breaks into microplastics, and they pollute the beaches, threatening the marine ecosystem.”

58% Of plastic comes from mainland Chile

This phenomenon is absolutely disastrous in its consequences for the local wildlife. It is stated that marine resources comprise a big part of the nutrition among the inhabitants of the island. Sea urchins and blue fish, which suffer from this anomaly, are an essential constituent of the community diet.

This pollution puts the island’s residents in jeopardy concerning food security and threatens to disrupt the food chain completely, according to Rapa Nui’s Mayor, Pedro Edmunds. Reports show that 58% of plastic reaching the island emanates from mainland Chile, hinting that this marine pollution issue also originates from poor national waste management.

Meanwhile, against this crisis, there is a grassroots movement to fight plastic pollution, and perhaps an international agreement next November in South Korea can present yet another opportunity to urge governments to take effective actions globally.

“We cannot let a paradise like Easter Island be buried by waste that not only disfigures its landscape but also endangers the survival of its marine ecosystem and the health of its people,” said one local leader. “It’s time to act promptly to put an end to this alarming phenomenon as soon as possible.”