By Jaquelyn Burton (Coeval, Inc.) Garbage is a problem. But, plastic is the real disaster - it is as valid on land as it is on the seas. In fact, a lot of the plastics in the seas came there by way of the cities and towns that are along the coastlines of the world. The trash that blows into the harbor and bays - that which comes from alongside the … [Read more...]
Biodegradable Plastics Don’t Work At Sea – Says New UN Study
"Don't discard 'Biodegradable' plastics at sea" asks a new report from the United Nations because biodegradable plastics don't disintegrate in the ocean. Complete degradation of biodegradable plastic occurs when none of the original polymer remains, a process involving microbial action (i.e. it is broken down to carbon dioxide, methane and water) but this process … [Read more...]
Researchers Complete Pacific Garbage Patch Recon Ahead of Proposed Cleanup
By Emmett Berg SAN FRANCISCO, Aug 23 (Reuters) - Researchers returned on Sunday from mapping and sampling a massive swirling cluster of trash floating in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, as the Dutch-borne crew works to refine a clean-up strategy it will roll out globally. The crew of the Ocean Cleanup, backed by volunteers in sailboats, ventured to areas of the … [Read more...]
Can This Ocean Array Rid The World’s Oceans of Harmful Plastics?
We first heard about this concept back in late 2012 when a first year aerospace engineering student named Boyan Slat gave a TED talk about how the so-called "Great Pacific Garbage patch", and all of the world's oceans for that matter, can essentially clean themselves of harmful plastics. (See: Can The Great Pacific Garbage Patch Clean Itself?) Now, 19-year-old Slat is back … [Read more...]
Can The Great Pacific Garbage Patch Clean Itself?
We've heard it before; the Great Pacific Garbage Patch is a problem for which there is no solution. It affects the food chain, it fouls beaches, it's bad for ships, and it will never go away. That is unless you talk to Boyan Slat, first year aerospace engineering student and creator of the Marine Litter Extraction system. During a recent TEDx talk at his school, TU Delft … [Read more...]
Pacific Garbage Patch “Grossly Exaggerated” Says One University Scientist
There is a lot of plastic trash floating in the Pacific Ocean, but claims that the “Great Garbage Patch” between California and Japan is twice the size of Texas are grossly exaggerated, according to an analysis by an Oregon State University scientist. Further claims that the oceans are filled with more plastic than plankton, and that the patch has been growing … [Read more...]
Garbage Patch – Plastic Island in the Pacific
With all the recent talk of the Gulf Oil Spill and its effect on the marine environment it is good to take a moment and look at some of the other pollutants that are in our oceans. Man made plastics will be in our oceans for far longer then the oil that is spilling into the Gulf. Last week we brought you The Great Pacific Garbage Patch – Mapped This week we bring you a … [Read more...]