Plastic waste garbage floating in Pacific Ocean has increased 100-fold

[joboo]

http://news.discovery.com/earth/pacific-ocean-plastic-increase-120509.html

The vast swirl of plastic waste floating in the North Pacific has increased 100-fold over the last 40 years, according to a research paper published Wednesday.

And scientists warned the killer soup of microplastic -- particles smaller than five millimeters (0.2 inches) -- threatened to alter the open ocean's natural environment.

http://news.discovery.com/earth/2012/05/09/plastic.jpg

ANALYSIS: Ocean Plastic Hiding Below the Surface (http://news.discovery.com/earth/ocean-plastic-hiding-below-surface-120427.html)
In the period 1972 to 1987, no microplastic was found in the majority of samples taken for testing, said the paper in the Royal Society journal Biology Letters.
Today, scientists estimate the swirling mass of waste known as the North Pacific Subtropical Gyre (NPSG) or the Great Pacific Garbage Patch, is roughly the size of Texas.

http://www.mrkate.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/09/img_Great-Pacific-Garbage-Patch_2-copy.jpg

"The abundance of small human-produced plastic particles in the NPSG has increased by 100 times over the last four decades," said a statement on the findings of researchers from the University of California.

The United Nations Environment Program says around 13,000 pieces of plastic litter are found in every square kilometer of sea,but the problem is worst in the North Pacific.

http://msnbcmedia.msn.com/j/MSNBC/Components/Photo/_new/120509-noaa-gyre-map-2a.photoblog600.jpg

The plastic particles are being vacuumed up by marine life and birds, and the mix is heavy with toxic chemicals.

The study said the NPSG is providing a new habitat for ocean insects called "sea-skaters" which prey on plankton and fish eggs and are in turn fed on by seabirds, turtles and fish.

The insect, which spends its entire life at sea, needs a hard surface on which to lay its eggs -- previously limited to relatively rare items like floating wood, pumice and sea shells.

If microplastic density continues to grow, insect numbers will increase as well, the scientists warned, "potentially at the expense of prey such as zooplankton or fish eggs".

http://www.documentingreality.com/forum/attachments/f2/49977d1242326720-great-pacific-garbage-patch-pictures-001.jpg
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http://i2.listal.com/image/3170276/500full.jpg (http://www.listal.com/viewimage/3170276)

[Cebu_4_2]

Now that's where these things come from!

http://www.documentingreality.com/forum/attachments/f2/49977d1242326720-great-pacific-garbage-patch-pictures-001.jpg

[Serpo]

plasatonia

[mamboni]

In the future, this plastic gyre will be huge petrochemical resource mined by solar-power water skimmers known colloquially as 'scumsuckers.' Wars will be fought over this huge latent depot of petrochemicals, as all of the world's oil runs dry.

[Horn]

Last I heard, LaRouche wanted this material to build a bridge across the Bering Straight.

[Errosion Of Accord]

In the future, this plastic gyre will be huge petrochemical resource mined by solar-power water skimmers known colloquially as 'scumsuckers.' Wars will be fought over this huge latent depot of petrochemicals, as all of the world's oil runs dry.

Yep, the minute someone figures out that there is profit in them there oceans they will be all over it. It's sad because the bugs will have no place to lay their eggs and the environmentalist will file lawsuits.

[mick silver]

i find it hard to think that someone has not found away to mine this stuff and make alot of paper

[gunDriller]

the plastic is real spread out. it's not so much a bunch of 6 pack plastic things floating around, more a bunch of teeny bits of plastic, with islands of plastic crap in places. hundreds of thousands of square miles of it.

i don't think it will ever be cleaned up.

also, now it's being joined by radioactive crap from Fukushima.


there's also a lot of gold in sea-water. i don't know if they'll succeed, but i could see people trying to build something with massive pumps out in the middle of the Plastic Patch, trying to extract gold & other valuable elements at concentrations of parts per billion/trillion.

[mamboni]

I don't consider myself an environmentalist per se, but this is disgraceful how we are polluting the Pacific ocean, amongst numerous other locales. I don't know what the answer is; though let's face it: this is an international problem that can only be addressed by collective action. Yet most of us here have a healthy disdain for collective bodies imposing their will on all of us. But is there really an alternative when dealing with the environment.

Living on ten acres of pristine woods, I am very respectful of the land. I do not allow litter of any kind. If I see a plastic wrapper, bottle or bag, it's typically a contractor. I politely tell him not to treat the forest like a garbage dump. The animals and plants were here first - we are the invaders. The least we can do is minimize our footprint. I am very assiduous about spraying. I tell my family that any crap you spray ultimately ends up in our ground water and well water. So I will only spray the occasional wasp nest, of which we have many. Mosquitos and bugs are handled by our neighborhood bats, for whom I have hung a large and luxurious house.

[solid]

I don't consider myself an environmentalist per se, but this is disgraceful how we are polluting the Pacific ocean, amongst numerous other locales. I don't know what the answer is; though let's face it: this is an international problem that can only be addressed by collective action. Yet most of us here have a healthy disdain for collective bodies imposing their will on all of us. But is there really an alternative when dealing with the environment.

I think it's more environmental education than imposing will on all of us. I work in the maritime industry, and on a positive note, the trend seems to be reversing, and people are paying more attention to protecting our waterways, inland, and at sea. The dumping of plastics is prohibited anywhere at sea. The SF Bay, for example, is a lot less polluted than it was years ago. If it wasn't from the mercury washed down from the hydro mines...the fish would be safe to eat. But that was caused many years ago.

For the most part, it's foreign vessels that are ignorant about dumping plastics. The Red Sea, for example, is supposed to be the most polluted.

Whenever I read about the north pacific garbage patch, it saddens me. Then I remind myself that the trend is reversing, and as others have stated, at some point there will be some revenue generating project to go in there and clean it up. Maybe Obama can create some jobs that way. :)

[mamboni]

Maybe Obama can create some jobs that way. :)



Obama is potentially in a unique position to help here:

http://gold-silver.us/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=2797&d=1337101332

2797

[Neuro]

Obama is potentially in a unique position to help here:

http://gold-silver.us/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=2797&d=1337101332

2797

I don't know... I get the urge to throw the ******* thing in the Ocean!

[mamboni]

I don't know... I get the urge to throw the ******* thing in the Ocean!

Please try to see the bigger picture. Yes, he is an asshole. But, in this application he can serve a useful purpose for the greater good.::)

[Neuro]

Please try to see the bigger picture. Yes, he is an asshole. But, in this application he can serve a useful purpose for the greater good.::)

I know, I know. I let the emotions carry me away from reason here. It is just that I invested in 5000 of these Head-O-State, to make an easy profit selling them on E-bay. But no-one wants them. I was thinking about painting them like garden gnomes, but they are to small for that!

[mamboni]

I know, I know. I let the emotions carry me away from reason here. It is just that I invested in 5000 of these Head-O-State, to make an easy profit selling them on E-bay. But no-one wants them. I was thinking about painting them like garden gnomes, but they are to small for that!

You should quote the length in centimeters and they will sell like hot cakes! When the buyer complains, tell her she is ignorant because everyone is using metric now.:)sal

[Norweger]

I'm all for Eco-fascism. The west should adopt the rules of Singapore and like minded countries.

Bigger companies ought to be forced to use bio-degradable packaging etc.