Maybe we are reading a different page, there are some papers showing what IS, not what COULD be : > it was shown that over 663 different species were negativel

Maybe we are reading a different page, there are some papers showing what IS, not what COULD be : > it was shown that over 663 different species were negatively impacted by marine debris with approximately 11% of reported cases specifically related to the ingestion of microplastics > Increased oceanic microplastic debris enhances oviposition in an endemic pelagic insect And so on. The rest aren't "vague alarmist statements", but sensible evidence based predictions. They may or may not turn out to be premature, but given that : - the absense of microbeads isn't a serious issue for humanity or even quality of life - there are known alternatives (listed in the article) - if the predictions turn out to be true, it will be too late to do anything about it then as they can't be cleaned up it seems sensible to take precautionary measures now.