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Volu me 105 Issue 93
UH scientists assess Japan debris with computer technology
UH researchers have projected that Japanese tsunami debris may hit Hawaiian shores in a year. A second, more powerful barrage of debris is expected in five years. COURTESY OF AMANDA MURCOCK
A NGEL RUSSELL Staff Writer
UH scientists have conducted computer modeling that projects that debris created by the Japanese tsunami will drift into the Pacific Ocean. “We don’t know the exact composition of debris from Japan,” UH researcher Jan Hafner stated. UH researcher Nikolai Maximenko, who is also working on the project, added, “Normally the garbage patch is made up of trash washed down from the rivers. It’s more or less what you would fi nd in a garbage can. But this tsunami was a disaster event. The water would take everything not bolted down. So it’s not just the household rubbish.”
The computer modeling system is based on the many years spent tracking the Pacific Ocean currents using drifting buoys with Global Positioning System devices. Using the data from these buoys, Masimenko and Hafner came up with a computer model that predicts the movement of floating objects. Based upon these projections, debris will first spread eastward from the Japan coast, and in a year the northwestern Hawaiian islands will see pieces washing up along the shores. The amount of debris circulating the ocean has been a problem even before the Japanese tsunami. The North Pacific Garbage Patch, which is characterized by high concentrations of f loating debris made up of plastics, chemical sludge, and
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other items, have been trapped by the currents of the North Pacific Gyre for years. The tsunami debris will end up circulating through the gyre. The recent international Marine Debris Conference in Hawai‘i described the magnitude of the problem; the massive amount of debris caused by the tsunami has now only magnified an existing problem. Much of the debris that leaves the North Pacific Garbage Patch ends up on Hawai‘i’s reefs and beaches. The damage caused by debris in the ecosystem has lasting effects, and Hawai‘i residents are concerned with how much damage the debris will have on the ecosystem. Hafner stated, “You might see different types of unusual items being washed up on
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beaches ... airplanes, cars, everything.” According to National Geographic, nearly 300 species of defenseless wildlife suffers unnecessarily due to dangerous debris. An estimated 100,000 marine mammals including dolphins, whales, seals and sea turtles choke or get tangled in debris every year. An estimated 86 percent of all sea turtles are affected by marine rubbish. In three years, the debris will reach the U.S. West Coast, landing on California beaches and the beaches of British Columbia, A laska and Baja California. From there, the debris will then drift back into the Pacific, where it will break into smaller pieces, and in five years Hawaiian shores can expect to see another barrage of debris that will be stronger than the first. T he possibilit y of radiation leaked from the Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant ending up in the North Pacif ic patch is unknown. “If it’s liquid, it behaves differently. With the vastness of the ocean, chances are that it would be diluted, but if radioactivity is attached to fl oating debris, it’s a different story … there is the potential,” Hafner stated. “I wouldn’t want to alarm people about imminent danger; its 1,000 miles from Hawai‘i now, and it won’t reach here for another year.” The projections of the debris will help guide clean-up and tracking operations. R ia Lulla, a resident of Hawai‘i, stated, “People in Hawai‘i care about their land, and if they knew what was in store I think people would definitely help clean up the beaches.” The director of research and cofounder of the Hawai‘i Wildlife fund, Bill Gilmartin, hosts clean-ups alongside Hawai‘i’s shores and asked that people interested in joining email kahakai.cleanups@gmail.com.
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