Western garbage patch

There are also people working on cleanup and removal of debris on or near the shore because it's easier to get land trash picked up. Other groups are looking at doing open ocean cleanup to collect debris like fishing gear and other smaller pieces that are floating around, but there are some challenges since the Pacific Ocean is so big and deep. Videos show dramatic snapshots of response to Colorado's Marshall Fire. In shadow of pandemic, Danish queen marks 50 years on throne. Load Error.

The Ocean Cleanup's upgraded Interceptors: A weapon against plastic pollution in rivers, seas. CNET See more videos. Click to expand. Replay Video. Saildrones are mapping the ocean, counting fish and monitoring climate change. Microsoft and partners may be compensated if you purchase something through recommended links in this article. Found the story interesting? Like us on Facebook to see similar stories. I'm already a fan, don't show this again.

Send MSN Feedback. How can we improve? Please give an overall site rating:. Privacy Statement. Opens in a new window Opens an external site Opens an external site in a new window. This makes it possible to sail through some areas of the Great Pacific Garbage Patch and see very little to no debris. It is the most well known patch.

While some areas of the patch have more trash than others, much of the debris is made of microplastics by count. Because microplastics are smaller than a pencil eraser, they are not immediately noticeable to the naked eye.

Garbage patches are huge! Garbage patches, especially the Great Pacific Garbage Patch, are far out in the middle of the ocean where people hardly ever go. Because they are so remote, it can be hard to study them. Scientists rarely get to see the impacts of garbage patches on animals first hand.

So far, we know that marine debris found in garbage patches can impact wildlife in a number of ways:. Entanglement and ghost fishing : Marine life can be caught and injured, or potentially killed in certain types of debris. Lost fishing nets are especially dangerous. Ghost nets can trap or wrap around animals, entangling them.

Plastic debris with loops can also get hooked on wildlife - think packing straps, six-pack rings, handles of plastic bags, etc. Ingestion : Animals may mistakenly eat plastic and other debris. We know that this can be harmful to the health of fish, seabirds, and other marine animals.

These items can take up room in their stomachs, making the animals feel full and stopping them from eating real food. Non-native species : Marine debris can transport species from one place to another.

Algae, barnacles, crabs, or other species can attach themselves to debris and be transported across the ocean. If the species is invasive, and can settle and establish in a new environment, it can outcompete or overcrowd native species, disrupting the ecosystem. Generally speaking, we know that humans may be exposed to microplastics from a number of sources, such as seafood , sea salt, tap water, beer, and even honey.

However, we do not know how or if humans are impacted by this. Plastic microfibers can also be transported in the air and found in household dust e. The research community is actively exploring this issue. As plastics break down through photodegradation, they leach out colorants and chemicals, such as bisphenol A BPA , that have been linked to environmental and health problems. Conversely, plastics can also absorb pollutants, such as PCBs, from the seawater. These chemicals can then enter the food chain when consumed by marine life.

Many individuals and international organizations, however, are dedicated to preventing the patch from growing. Cleaning up marine debris is not as easy as it sounds. Many microplastics are the same size as small sea animals, so nets designed to scoop up trash would catch these creatures as well. Even if we could design nets that would just catch garbage, the size of the oceans makes this job far too time-consuming to consider.

Many expeditions have traveled through the Great Pacific Garbage Patch. Charles Moore, who discovered the patch in , continues to raise awareness through his own environmental organization, the Algalita Marine Research Foundation. During a expedition , Moore and his team used aerial drones, to assess from above the extent of the trash below. The drones determined that there is times more plastic by weight than previously measured. The team also discovered more permanent plastic features, or islands, some over 15 meters 50 feet in length.

Scientists and explorers agree that limiting or eliminating our use of disposable plastics and increasing our use of biodegradable resources will be the best way to clean up the Great Pacific Garbage Patch. Organizations such as the Plastic Pollution Coalition and the Plastic Oceans Foundation are using social media and direct action campaigns to support individuals, manufacturers, and businesses in their transition from toxic , disposable plastics to biodegradable or reusable materials.

This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 2. Quotable Captain "So on the way back to our home port in Long Beach, California, we decided to take a shortcut through the gyre, which few seafarers ever cross.

Fishermen shun it because its waters lack the nutrients to support an abundant catch. Sailors dodge it because it lacks the wind to propel their sailboats. In the week it took to cross the subtropical high, no matter what time of day I looked, plastic debris was floating everywhere: bottles, bottle caps, wrappers, fragments.

Months later, after I discussed what I had seen with the oceanographer Curtis Ebbesmeyer, perhaps the world's leading expert on flotsam, he began referring to the area as the 'eastern garbage patch. Strange Cargo When ships are caught in storms, they often lose cargo to the oceans. The following are just a few of the strange items that have washed up on shores:.

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If no button appears, you cannot download or save the media. Text on this page is printable and can be used according to our Terms of Service. Any interactives on this page can only be played while you are visiting our website. You cannot download interactives. Marine ecosystems contain a diverse array of living organisms and abiotic processes.

From massive marine mammals like whales to the tiny krill that form the bottom of the food chain, all life in the ocean is interconnected.

While the ocean seems vast and unending, it is, in fact, finite; as the climate continues to change, we are learning more about those limits. Explore these resources to teach students about marine organisms, their relationship with one another, and with their environment.

Whether a description of a keystone species or the impact of the Pacific garbage patch, these articles provide insight into a breadth of important issues facing our world today, including the environment, civic engagement, and history. Plastic is ubiquitous in our everyday lives.