Trash Island Shows Its Ugly Face- The Terrifying Reality of the Great Pacific Garbage Patch
Picture yourself sailing around the ocean. The skies are blue; the water is calm. It could not be a better day for a sail. You are bobbing along when suddenly your boat lurches to a stop. You look down and see that your boat has beached itself on an island of garbage. Literally. Trash island, the colloquial term for the ‘Great Pacific Garbage Patch,’ sounds like a destination in a cheesy movie. Unfortunately, there is nothing cinematic about it. The ‘island’ is not really an island at all, but a cluster of marine debris spanning from North America to Japan. The nickname of ‘The Patch’ was given to the mountain of trash by its founder Charles Moore. These spinning vortexes of garbage are created by currents that run throughout the Pacific Ocean
A series of Subtropical Convergence Zones connect the Great Pacific Garbage Patch. The convergence zones mark where warm water meets with the colder water and creates a type of trash current for all marine debris. In an example given by National Geographic, a discarded water bottle is thrown into the ocean. It takes the California Current to Mexico. The bottle then moves into the North Equatorial Current, which crosses the Pacific. Next, the bottle brushes by the coast of Japan, where the bottle will travel north on the powerful Kuroshio Current. Finally, the bottle travels west on the North Pacific Current, where the Eastern and Western Garbage Patches’ gently rolling tides draw in the bottle, adding it to trash island. According to National Geographic, about 50% of the marine debris seen in the patch comes from land-based activities. Whereas the remaining percentage comes from large oil rigs, boaters, and other marine traffic. The patch contains some interesting items as well; “The majority of this debris — about 705,000 tons — is fishing nets. More unusual items, such as computer monitors and LEGOs, come from dropped shipping containers.” While it should, in theory, be easy enough to clean up such a contained spiral of garbage; the execution is not that simple. In an article from National Geographic, The National Ocean and Atmospheric Administration’s, or NOAA, said that the patch would take a consecutive 70 years to clean up. This is because most of the debris in the patch comes from microplastics. Microplastics are tiny pieces of plastic that continue to pollute the ocean even after a product has appeared to have broken down.
Most microplastics are about the same size as some marine creatures. This means that it would be impossible to design a net that would scoop up the plastic, but not the sea creatures. As well, using nets to clean the patch can potentially lead to more pollution. If the net gets stuck and rips, the net is almost impossible to find and reel in. This creates ‘ghost fishing.’ This means the abandoned net will unintentionally capture marine animals and kill them in the process.
Multiple organizations have tried to clean up the patch, even its founder Charles Moore, who discovered the garbage heap in 1997. Moore is still trying to raise awareness of the marine issue through his own foundation, Algalita Marine Research Foundation. In 2014 Moore used drones to get a closer look at the patch. To the surprise of Moore and his team, they found that the patch had grown permanent plastic islands, meaning cleaning the patch was going to be harder than anyone anticipated.
The Algalita Marine Research Foundation strives to teach youth about the impact of plastic on the ocean’s ecosystem. The foundation connects scientists and businesses with youth to have in-depth conversations about plastic consumptions. Their focus is not only on cleaning up the environment but to shift the way people think about their environmental impact. The foundation holds events throughout the year that include: beach cleanups, guest speakers, networking events, and Do- It- Yourself workshops. The foundation has a donation section on their website home page. Captain Charles Moore states, “It has never been more important than now to fight for the safety of our oceans. To build a better future for our children and grandchildren, please donate today. Please donate and participate in cleaning our oceans.”
Why care about the Great Pacific Garbage Patch? The ocean is a lifeline for humans. NOAA states that 50% of our oxygen comes from the ocean. This means that if our oceans’ health keeps decreasing, so does our air. In a world where people throw away plastic without a second thought, the education of plastic waste has never been more important. The Algalita Marine Research Foundation strives for that very goal. In teaching society about the dangers of plastic waste, they can ensure that a new generation of humans does not make the same mistake as the last. With the help of the foundation, humans can evaluate their relationship with plastic and make changes to ensure ocean protection. In the words of Captain Charles Moore, “we must work towards a world where plastic pollution is unthinkable.” Join the change today at https://algalita.org/.