Micro plastics have recently been found in Rocky Mountain National Park according to chemist Gregory Weatherbee. This has been happening due to increased levels of discarded plastic in the environment.

Despite Rocky Mountain National Park being one of the most isolated places on the planet it is still not out of micro plastics reach. Recently water has been tested by chemist, Gregory Weatherbee, in RMNP at a remote location 10,000 feet above seal level.

“That made me realize that what we had here was something that was quite significant because the question is how do those plastics get into that remote area?” Weatherbee said.

Gregory Weatherbee’s theory is that micro plastics are somehow being transport through the atmosphere in the water cycle. A study in France that looks at water droplets in the Pyrenees backs this up. These micro plastics being in the atmosphere is dangerous.

“Micro plastic is a new atmospheric pollutant,” said the author of the study.

These micro plastics get into everything including are food and water. The long-term effects of this are still unseen but the short-term risks are apparent. Stephan Krause form the University of Birmingham made it clear that certain flame retardant coatings on plastics are dangerous to humans and can cause them to become sick.

“Plastic particles from furniture and carpets could contain flame retardants that are toxic to humans,” Krause said.

Alice Fullmer of The Water Research Foundation has made it clear that treating this issue is very difficult and urgent. “It’s just that there’s such an abundance that even removal of most of them can result in some getting through,” Fullmer said.