Sperm whale stranded in Indonesia found to have 1,000 pieces of plastic in its stomach!

Postmortem of a dead stranded sperm whale ( Physeter macrocephalus ) from Indonesia has shown the whale had eaten plastics, from bottles to bags, flip flops and drinking cups, causing concern among environmental officials and governments world wide. About 5.9 kg of plastic waste was found in the animals carcass, including 25 plastic bags! Sperm whales may mistake plastic bags for their preferred prey squid. It is not possible to determine the exact cause of death due to the animal's advanced state of decay, however this further highlights the issue of plastic in our oceans.

Indonesia, an archipelago of 260 million people, is the world's second largest plastic polluter after China, according to a new study published in the journal Science , it produces 3.2 million tons of mismanaged plastic waste a year, of which 1.29 million tonnes ends up in the ocean. This event has prompted more action by the Indonesian government, who are making efforts to reduce the use of plastic, including urging shops not to provide plastic bags to customers and teaching in schools nationwide. The Indonesian government's aims to reduce plastic use by 70% by 2025.

This ambitious goal could be a model for other countries to follow and is only possible if people can learn to understand that plastic waste is a common threat to both humans and wildlife.

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