Slow Clap Presents: The Great Pacific Garbage Patch

Real story.  Real Stupid.

The great pacific garbage patch is a swirling glob of marine debris, chemical sludge, plastic, and garbage.  It isn't a floating island of trash that can be visualized by aircraft or satellite.  It is an accumulation of very small particles that sit on the surface of the water, or just below the surface of the water.  The garbage patch was first studied in 1988.  

The exact size of the patch is difficult to measure.  The best estimate is that it is at least as big as the state of Texas and could possibly be as large as Russia.  The patch is estimated to contain 80,000 metric tons of plastic and is accumulating much more as time passes.

The patch has formed in the North Pacific gyre.  A gyre is a system of naturally occurring oceanic  currents that swirl and circle around itself.  The North Pacific gyre has a rotational pattern that draws in water, and therefor waste, from North America and Japan.  

The source of the plastic, garbage, and debris is best summed up with a direct quote from the EPA.  "The primary source of marine debris is the improper waste disposal or management of trash and manufacturing products, including plastics (e.g., littering, illegal dumping) ... Debris is generated on land at marinas, ports, rivers, harbors, docks, and storm drains. Debris is generated at sea from fishing vessels, stationary platforms, and cargo ships." 

Plastic breaks down into smaller pieces when it is in the ocean.  It it subjected to the harsh UV rays from the sun and undergoes a process known as photodegradation.  This is how so many microplastics are formed in the water.  The microplastics are then eaten by marine life.  Chemicals from the microplastic accumulate in the body tissues of the marine animal and it also collects and can become lodged in the digestive tract or stomach.  It is then passed up the food chain all the way to your plate.

Each year over a million sea birds and over 100,000 marine animals die because of plastic pollution.  How much plastic pollution could there possibly be?  A study in 2017 stated that since 1950, 9.1 billion tons of plastic has been made.  Of that 9.1 billion tons, 7 billion tons are no longer in use.  Of the 7 billion tons no longer in use, 9 percent has been recycled, 12 percent has been incinerated, leaving 5.5 billion tons in landfills and oceans.

My two cents:  Animals shouldn't have to suffer because of our waste.  The Great Pacific Garbage Patch illustrates what filthy creatures we are.  How much is enough?

Rating:  I give The Great Pacific Garbage Patch five out of five possible slow claps.  We've been studying it since 1988 yet it continues to grow due to our own ignorance and unwillingness to change our ways.  Way to go everyone, we have really f*cked mother nature in the a** on this one.