Are There Really 'Continents' of Floating Garbage?

by WiredBerries Editors — January 9, 2008

Stories have started surfacing and many have wondered if the rumors are true: Are there really 'continents' or massive floating garbage patches residing in the pacific ocean? Apparently, the rumors are true, and these unsightly patches are reportedly killing marine life and releasing poisons that enter the human food chain, as well. However, the word "continent" isn't quite accurate. Although the plastic bits are as widespread as the size of continents, most of the plastic is floating just beneath the surface, or has sunk to the bottom already. It's more like the ocean is becoming a giant bowl of "plastic soup."

Sadly, marine researcher Charles Moore at the Algalita Marina Research Foundation in Long Beach says there's no practical fix for the problem. He has been studying the massive patch for the past 10 years, and said the debris is to the point where it would be nearly impossible to extract. The trash collects in this remote area, known as the North Pacific Gyre, due to a clockwise trade wind that encircles the Pacific Rim. According to Moore, the trash accumulates the same way bubbles clump at the center of hot tub.

Perhaps an even bigger problem is hiding beneath the surface of the islands of garbage. Greenpeace reports that about 70 percent of the plastic that makes it to the ocean sinks to the bottom, where it then smothers marine life on the ocean floor. Dutch scientists have found 600,000 tons of discarded plastic on the bottom of the North Sea alone.

Greenpeace says embracing the three Rs -- reduce, re-use, and recycle -- would help tackle the problem. Plastic recycling is lagging well behind paper and cardboard. Part of the reason is because many people aren't even sure what recycling options exist in their area. But there are other challenges for plastic recycling too. Some plastics release toxic chemicals into the atmosphere, and are more expensive to recycle than to simply create a new product from petrochemicals. The widespread use of bioplastics could largely reduce the amount of plastic strewn around the world. Traditional petrochemical-based plastics are non-degradable and non-renewable; degradable plastic breaks into smaller pieces in UV light but remains plastic.

While parts of our oceans have already become inhospitable soups of plastic and plankton, we can at least mitigate the future consequences by making smart individual choices. Experts say the best way to mitigate the damage down the road is by buying less products that contain plastics or plastic packaging, recycling, lobbying for safer bio-degradable plastics, and by purchasing reusable cloth grocery bags among other strategies.