Wildlife Welfare

Wild Bird Plastic Ingestion Prevention

Reducing plastic pollution in marine and freshwater environments directly reduces seabird and waterbird plastic ingestion and welfare harm.

Key Facts

Over 90% of seabird species globally have ingested plastic
Microplastics are now found in birds across all habitat types
Plastic ingestion causes gut obstruction, perforation, and toxic effects
Reducing single-use plastics at source is the most effective intervention
Beach clean-up events remove plastic before it fragments into microplastics

Welfare Considerations

Plastic ingestion causes progressive suffering in affected birds - gut blockage, reduced nutrition, and chemical toxicity accumulate over time. The scale of plastic pollution means this affects billions of individual birds globally. Consumer behaviour change and legislative intervention that reduces plastic production and waste are the most impactful welfare interventions at scale.

What You Can Do

Dramatically reduce single-use plastic consumption
Participate in or support beach and waterway clean-up initiatives
Advocate for plastic producer responsibility legislation