Elissa V.
As we all soak up the remaining days of summer, beaches around the world are swarmed with warm weather revelers. Unfortunately, the human population and the abundance of waste it produces are taking a toll on nature's most beloved attraction, and oceans are baring the brunt of the damage.
In particular, an area of the Pacific Ocean dubbed the "Great Pacific Garbage Patch", or "Garbage Island", is a monstrous mass of trash twice the size of Texas. Weighing in at over 3.5 million tons, the floating garbage dump consisting of 80% plastics is in a no-man's land between San Francisco and Hawaii. The debris then litters beaches, closes swimming areas, harms fisheries, and damages boat and submarine equipment.
Plastic gets into the ocean when people throw it from ships or leave it in the path of an incoming tide, but also when rivers carry it there, or when sewage systems and storm drains overflow. Despite the Ocean Dumping Reform Act, the U.S. still releases more than 850 billion gallons of untreated sewage and storm runoff every year, according to a 2004 E.P.A. report. Comb the Manhattan waterfront and you will find, along with the usual windrows of cups, bottles and plastic bags, what the E.P.A. calls "floatables," those "visible buoyant or semibuoyant solids" that people flush into the waste stream like cotton swabs, condoms, tampon applicators and dental floss. - The New York Times
Birds and marine animals suffer greatly as a result of the pollution. The floating debris resembles zooplankton to jellyfish, thus making its way into the food chain. Wildlife mistakenly ingests the harmful plastics and often dies by suffocation or poisoning, and the toxins from the trash can also alter an animal's hormones which cause irreversible damage to future generations of a species. Albatrosses, which mainly inhabit the northern part of the Pacific, have felt the most impact from the "Great Pacific Garbage Patch". They give birth to about 500,000 chicks a year and over 200,000 of them die as a result of their parents mistakenly feeding them plastic. Overall, more than a million animals die every year because of the plastic and debris.
Unfortunately, the situation isn't reversible. Even if a joint effort between environmental groups and governments were made to clean up the debris, the cost would skyrocket into the billions. Marine biologists who have monitored the "Great Pacific Garbage Patch" for over a decade have come to the conclusion that the pollution is entirely preventable - but only if people made a conscious effort to decrease their dependency on plastics (To watch a team from VBS.TV search for "Garbage Island", click here).
Bottled water, plastic bags, and children's toys make up a large portion of the garbage, so decreasing their use is the first step in preventing future damage. Advocating for local waste management companies to expand their list of accepted recycled plastics is also critical, and local officials must take initiative to more effectively manage land waste. Businesses also play a large role in the problem but are rarely held accountable when they choose not to use biodegradable packaging materials.
To join fellow Celsias members in their efforts to reduce excess packaging use, click here.
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