The Great Pacific Garbage Patch. Have you heard of it? Its is quite frankly one of the most alarming examples of marine pollution there is. And no surprises here, its caused by human activity.
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| Image via Kevin Krejci - Flickr |
So WHAT is it?
The Great Pacific Garbage Patch (or Pacific Trash Vortex) is essentially a plastic graveyard in the ocean. Its full of junk like old footballs, kayaks, lego blocks, plastic bottles and pretty much anything else you can think of.
The Garbage Patch covers anywhere from 700 000 square km to up to 15 000 000 square km. It is essentially the largest landfill in the world - the smallest estimates put it around the size of Texas and the largest estimates say it could be twice the size of the United States. This thing is HUGE! Why don’t we know how large it is? Because much of the plastic is not actually visible to the human eye if you are in an airplane, using satellite imagery, or are even on a boat deck.
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| Image via João Vianna / National Geographic |
The plastic is mostly particles that have broken down to polymers, and much of it is under the surface of the water. In addition to plastic and polymers, you’ll find chemical sludge and other debris. This debris remains trapped in an area in the North Pacific because of ocean currents.
Think that this problem is contained to the patch? Sadly, you’d be wrong. The UN estimates that there are 46 000 pieces of floating plastic in every square mile of ocean.
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| Image via ingridtaylar - Flickr |
Why does it MATTER?
If the thought of a floating plastic wasteland doesn’t phase you, then how about this:
- Loss of life. Animals eat the plastic, then starve, become dehydrated and die because of the chemicals that fill their stomach.
- Human consumption of toxins. Toxins are eaten by jellyfish, which are eaten by fish, which are eaten by humans. Yes, we are all interconnected. You trash an ecosystem thousands of kilometers away, you will still end up with the effects. Thats just how it works.
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| Image via taylorandayumi - Flickr |
WHY does it happen?
You know that 7/11 slurpee cup you just tossed because you couldn’t find a garbage? Well, it blew in the wind, then it made its way to a stream, which met up with a river, which traveled to the ocean. And now its one more piece of debris that is adding to the problem.
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| Image via Chris Jordan |
Moral of the story - We need to be thinking long term! Dispose of waste properly. Use reusable products. Consume less. Waste less.
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