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| Albatross killed by plastic of the Great Pacific Garbage Patch By Chris Jordan CC BY 2.0 [CC BY 2.0], via Wikimedia Commons |
The Great Pacific Garbage Patch is a vast
area of the Pacific Ocean where tons of plastic garbage has been accumulated
for years. It is bounded by the North Tropical Pacific Gyre.
A Gyre is a circulating flow of ocean
current. There are total five Gyres – the North Pacific, South Pacific, North
Atlantic, South Atlantic and Indian Ocean Gyre. The circulating water of a gyre
creates a water body separated by the rest of the ocean.
How
did it Formed?
The plastic debris is dumped into the sea
from the industrialized nations which are close to the North Atlantic Gyre. The
source of all these litter is the population of the big cities, industries,
harbors and ships.
The ocean currents and the wind take the
debris into the Gyre. The Gyre accumulates these plastic pieces in two areas,
one near Japan and another to United States. Over the years the effects of
sunlight and sea water breaks the debris items into very small floating
particles. These particles are accumulated for decades and have resulted in the
Great Pacific Gyre or the Pacific trash vortex.
The
Size of the Garbage Patch
It is very difficult to determine the
actual size of the North Pacific Garbage Patch. The floating plastic particles
are too small to be seen from a inspection boat. Moreover, a large portion of
the debris is not floating near the surface. So, a satellite photo or a
surveillance plane is useless in this case. There is only one way to know the
answer, sampling the water in many places.
There are many opinions about the size of
the trash vortex. According to some the extent of its area is 270000 sq mi.
Some environment experts give a much larger figure of 580000 sq mi. The area is
no doubt large and it is increasing day by day.
Water
Pollution by the Plastic Debris of the Great Garbage Patch
The plastic is not a biodegradable
material. It is only disintegrates by the light. The light of the sun breaks
the floating plastic debris into very small particles. These micro particles
become so small that it enters the marine food chain.
The smaller fishes and sea animals ingests
the plastic particles. The bigger fishes, turtles and sea birds eat many such
fishes. In this way, considerable amount of plastic is accumulated in their
stomachs. Humans are also being affected by eating these fishes, shrimps and
crabs.
Some plastics can be decomposed by the sea
water and the sunlight. They release toxic chemicals like bisphenol A or PCB in
the sea. As a result, many smaller animals die due to water pollution.
Harmful
Effects
The plastic is not a safe thing to eat. The
floating plastic debris of the Pacific can come to your plate by the way of the
food chain.
It is observed that about 33% chicks of the
Albatross at the Midway Atoll die to the plastic pollution of the Great Pacific
Garbage Patch. The toxins cause the death of many smaller species of sea
animals.
It also helps to spread the growth of
invasive species like Jellyfish. These types of animals can absorb pollution
better and so they proliferate in this area. It results in farther degradation
of the marine ecosystem.
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| Map of the Great Pacific Garbage Patch [CC BY 2.0], via Wikimedia Commons |
How to Clean It?
It is very difficult to clean the Great
Pacific Garbage Patch. The very small floating plastic materials are difficult
to filter from the water without harming the smaller animals and plankton. A
net will also catch these sea animals with the plastic particles.
Even if we filter it with some special
process or technology, the area is too big to clean. It would take many decades
to accomplish the task. The cost of the operation will also be too high. It is
far from the continents and so no country is interested to take the
responsibility.
But there are many organizations who are
trying their best to do something about this problem. There are many experts
who are researching about the problem. Many organizations and self help groups
are trying their best to create awareness among people about the problem and
its future hazards.
Clean Our Oceans Refuge Coalition or COORC
is an organization which has taken to clean this area with three special
vessels which will also convert the debris to energy. They will also conduct
research on the area with these ships.
