An Ocean of Plastic

By Courtney DuChene Scenario: You go to the store and purchase groceries, the sales assistant rings you up and in a continuous motion places your items in plastic bags. When you get home you proceed to put the plastic covered items in their intended positions, and finally dispose of the plastic bag. What happens to all of the garbage and plastic after you ultimately throw it out? In society today, this throw away mindset has become the norm. Our generation grew up with the catchy phrase reduce, reuse, and recycle driven into our brains, yet few of us actually carry out these actions. To refer back to the question above what does happen once your garbage and plastics leave your residence? According to Gyres Institutes website approximately 50% is buried in landfills, 5% of plastics are reused, and the rest remains unaccounted for. Most of this unaccounted mass has ended up in the ocean with the help of environmental factors. There is no precise data on the quantity of human waste into the oceans, but estimates suggest approximately 6.4 million tons is added annually and 80% of that originates from land based sources [Schuyler et al, 2013]. Figure 1 (shown below) graphically shows the anthropogenic pollution from land based sources. Since this mass has been accumulating within the ocean it is now known as the Great Garbage Patch of the Pacific Ocean.

Figure 1

Gyres: Lets back up a little bit and ask: How does this garbage/plastic accumulate together? To answer this question we have to understand the intricate network of currents, wind and the Earths rotation within the oceans that create Gyres. With these three elements working together it creates a whirlpool motion, spinning clockwise, ultimately collecting pollutants in a similar location. There are five major gyres throughout the World: North Pacific, South Pacific, South Atlantic, North Atlantic, and Indian Ocean [Schuyler, 2013]. Each of these currents has been accumulating plastics throughout time. Specifically, for this blog the focus will remain on the North Pacific gyres since that is where the Great Garbage Patch is located between California and Hawaii [Sohn, 2011]. Plastic Pollution: In 1900 there were 0 pounds of plastic for every 1 pound of zooplankton, 2000 there were 6 pounds per 1 pound of zoo plankton. Now there is 60 pounds of plastic for every 1 pound of zooplankton [Segall, 2013]. These numbers are staggering, but on the contrary look very different than what is broadcasted to the public through the media [See image 1 & 2]. The media projects the garbage patch to be twice the size of Texas. However, research has been conducted on the patch and scientist have concluded that the patch is not floating towers of milk jugs, toilet seats and rubber duckies swirling in the middle of the ocean [Sohn, 2011]. The plastic overtime has broken down into pieces no bigger than 10 mm in diameter, which is why this particular pollution poses such an issue for wildlife [See image 3][Sohn, 2011]. In relation to being twice the size of Texas that may be true, however the patches are so widely spread out and very difficult to see therefore tremendously complicated to quantify total surface area.

Image 1 Accumulation of plastic

Image 2 Accumulation of garbage

Image 3 Broken down plastic

Contaminants: With tiny pieces of plastic mostly LDPE, HDPE, Polypropylene, and foamed plastics float in the ocean and others Polycarbonate, Polystrene, and PETE find a home on the bottom (sink) becomes an issue for wildlife and the environment [Gyres]. However, what you dont see happening is that the breakdown and release of chemicals into the ocean. Plastic companies manufacture plastics to exist for long periods of time, good for us to contain things bad for the environment. As plastics

breakdown into fragmented pieces they can release organic contaminants, including polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, petroleum hydrocarbons and bisphenol A to name a few [Teuten, 2009]. These contaminants not only pose a problem from the ocean but from waste disposal sites, leaching plasticizers into ground and surface water [Teuten, 2009]. Through environmental processes, leaching, and draining these contaminants find their way to the ocean adding to the accumulation. Yes, the breakdown of plastics can add toxins to the water, but that is not the only problem plastics generate. When products float on the top of the water they are not only breaking down but also absorbing heavy metals and other toxins from the ocean and can release these into the tissues of animals upon ingestion [Teuten, 2009]. Another problem relating to the absorption of metals and other agents relates to animal trophic levels. As it continues to build up in the trophic levels the endocrine begins to disrupt and slowly kill individuals and/or populations [Teuten, 2009]. Affects on animals: As it has been said multiple times through this blog this plastic pollution creates risks for wildlife. According to Gyres Institute 44% of all seabird species, 22% of Cetaceans, all sea turtle species, and a growing list of fish species have been documented with plastic in or around their bodies. There have been studies conducted for two different species, sea turtles and albatross birds, to get a better grasp on how pollution actually affects the species. Sea Turtles: There are 7 species of sea turtles that have been found to ingest plastic debris. 6 out of the 7 turtle species are dangerously close to being endangered and/or extinct. According to Teuten et. al [2009] there currently is not a reliable method for assessing ingestion of plastic in turtle populations. Two techniques that are used is stomach pumping and analysis of fecal matter. Both of these techniques drastically underestimate debris ingestion since only a small sample can be collected. In figure 2, seen below, graphically indicates the total number of pollution ingestion. Out of 31 studies providing details of ingested debris, 96.8% (n=30), reported that sea turtles ingested some form of plastic [Teuten, 2009].

Figure 2

Albatross: Research was conducted on Albatross birds located in Kure Atoll and compared findings to Albatross in Oahu, HI. Lindsey Young of the University of Hawaii and colleagues began to track adult albatross to understand forging patterns. As eggs began to hatch and consume food parents brought back for them there was a large percentage of plastic included. In Kure Atoll young 10 times more plastic than the Oahu birds, yet there were similar amounts of food consumed [Remote, 2013]. The most interesting fact about this study is the birds living in a more remote area (Kure Atoll) ingested or coughed up more debris than those living in the large city of Oahu. This study just proves that no matter the size of the community anthropogenic wastes and pollutants have affected isolated areas. Awareness: So the next question to ask is: what can we do? There have been many calls for people to properly handle their wastes and for cities to do the same. People have also been inspired by this problem and in one case created a boat named Plastiki made of 12,500 plastic bottles [AFP, 2010]. Plastiki not only is made of reusable resources, it used other environmentally friendly energy sources to sail the ocean. The watercraft has sailed from San Francisco to the French Pacific Territory for 108 days [AFP, 2010]. This voyage was not only to highlight the plastic pollution dangers but also other environmental hazards such as: climate change and over fishing to name a few. Now you definitely do not need to go build a boat of plastic bottles and sail the ocean to gain interest in the subject. Doing simple things at home such as reusing your plastic bottles in your home, making sure all products are properly

recycled and do your research! Before going around taking about these oceanic problems make sure you have your facts straight and then share your knowledge with your surrounding community.

Image 4

References: AFP. "Plastic Bottle Boat to Complete Pacific Journey." DNews. N.p., n.d. Web. 9 Feb. 2014. <http://news.discovery.com/earth/global-warming/plastic-bottle-boatplastiki.htm>. GYRES INSTITUTE. "5 Gyres - Understanding Plastic Pollution Through Exploration, Education, and Action." 5 Gyres Understanding Plastic Pollution Through Exploration, Education, and Action. n.d. Web. <http://5gyres.org/>. "Remote Albatrosses Feed on Ocean Garbage Patch." DNews. N.p., 11 Feb. 2013. Web. 10 Feb. 2014. <http://news.discovery.com/animals/albatross-plasticgarbage-patch.htm>. SCHUYLER, Q., HARDESTY, B. D., WILCOX, C. and TOWNSEND, K. (2014), Global Analysis of Anthropogenic Debris Ingestion by Sea Turtles. Conservation Biology, 28: 129139. doi: 10.1111/cobi.12126

SEGALL,BEN. "WATCH: What Is The Great Pacific Garbage Patch?" So Fresh and So Green. N.p., 18 Jan. 2013. Web. 9 Feb. 2014. <http://www.sofreshandsogreen.com/2013/01/18/watch-what-is-the-greatpacific-garbage-patch/>. SOHN, EMILY. "'Great Garbage Patch' Not So Great After All." DNews. N.p., n.d. Web. 12 Jan. 2011. 9 Feb. 2014. <http://news.discovery.com/earth/globalwarming/ocean-garbage-patch-exaggerated-110112.htm>. TEUTEN, E., SAQUING, J., KNAPPE, D., BARLAZ, M., ET AL. "Transport and Release of Chemicals from Plastics to the Environment and to Wildlife." Transport and Release of Chemicals from Plastics to the Environment and to Wildlife. N.p., 14 June 2009. Web. 10 Feb. 2014. <http://rstb.royalsocietypublishing.org/content/364/1526/2027.abstract>. Image 1, 2, & 3: SEGALL,BEN. "WATCH: What Is The Great Pacific Garbage Patch?" So Fresh and So Green. N.p., 18 Jan. 2013. Web. 9 Feb. 2014. <http://www.sofreshandsogreen.com/2013/01/18/watch-what-is-the-greatpacific-garbage-patch/>. Image 4: "The Snob Magazine." The Snob Magazine. N.p., n.d. Web. 12 Feb. 2014. <http://thesnobmag.com/index.php/fashion/timepieces/iwc-plastiki/>. Figure 1: AFP. "Plastic Bottle Boat to Complete Pacific Journey." DNews. N.p., n.d. Web. 9 Feb. 2014. <http://news.discovery.com/earth/global-warming/plastic-bottle-boatplastiki.htm>. Figure 2: SCHUYLER, Q., HARDESTY, B. D., WILCOX, C. and TOWNSEND, K. (2014), Global Analysis of Anthropogenic Debris Ingestion by Sea Turtles. Conservation Biology, 28: 129139. doi: 10.1111/cobi.12126