Plastic materials are toxic and deadly to our oceans and marine life. With as much as 1.6 billion pounds of plastic ending up in the ocean every year, plastic does not biodegrade, meaning that the plastic that ends up in the ocean remains there indefinitely. This poses a huge threat to our beautiful oceans and marine life. You may be thinking, “Why should I care?” The answer is simple — it’s a threat to you too! As long as we use the ocean as a garbage dump it’s going to worsen. The world can’t survive without water and neither can you.
WELCOME TO THE PACIFIC GARBAGE PATCH
DID YOU KNOW? Kamillo Beach, located in Hawaii has more plastic debris than sand. They don’t show you that in a travel brochure, do they?
THE WORLD’S 5 GARBAGE DUMPS
NORTH PACIFIC NORTH ATLANTIC The Pacific Garbage Patch is the world’s largest, though not its only, area of marine debris concentration. Figures for the size of the patch itself vary, but some researchers estimate it to be about the size of Texas and extending well beneath the ocean surface. The patch sits within the 9 million square mile North Pacific Subtropical Gyre, an enormous swirling expanse of ocean that represents the convergence of four major currents that draw in trash from as far away as the coasts of the United States and Japan.
SOUTH PACIFIC
SO ATL
OUTH LANTIC
INDIAN OCEAN
THERE ARE AN ESTIMATED 46,000 PLASTIC PIECES PER SQUARE MILE IN THE OCEAN.
WHERE DOES PLASTIC POLLUTION COME FROM? 80% of plastic pollution in the oceans comes from litter on land and beaches. Even if you live in land-locked areas, there is still a good change that the plastic you leave lying around could end up in the ocean! Food containers and packaging are the largest component of the municipal solid waste stream. Ocean-based sources, like overboard discharges from ships and discarded fishing gear, account for the other 20%.
80% of plastic marine debris comes from land based sources.
PLASTICS AND MARINE LIFE For larger animals, shiny plastic items can be mistaken for prey, like fish and squid, and are eaten by seabirds, marine mammals, fish and sea turtles. Death can come quickly when the plastic damages the digestive system or animals may starve when they feel full but have stomachs full of man-made objects that don’t digest and have no nutritional value. Animals can also become entangled in plastic debris and become injured or drown.
100,000 marine mammals die from plastic debris each year.
The oceans are vast – however, they are not immune to human influence. We have already altered or destroyed many marine ecosystems and driven million-year-old species to the brink of extinction. According to a study published in Science, less than 4 percent of the oceans remain unaffected by human activity. The good news is that we can restore our oceans to their former glory. In many cases, laws governing fishing and pollution already exist – we simply need to enforce them.
OUR VISION We look to a future in which dolphin sightings are common along any temperate coast; in which mighty marlins, sharks and tuna are abundant once again; in which whales and sea turtles thrive, cod are plentiful on both sides of the Atlantic, local fishing cultures thrive rather than decline and in which fish are a safe, growing and plentiful source of food around the world.
The oceans have become a dumping ground for our trash. Oceana seeks to make our oceans as rich, healthy and abundant as they once were.
Oceans cover 71 percent of the globe and they are as important to us as they are vast. Not only do they control our climate, they are an essential source of protein for nearly half the people of the world. They drive our economies. For millions of sailors, swimmers and vacationers of all stripes, they offer a refuge from the metal and concrete that encase our working lives. In the last few decades, we have seen the benefits of restored rivers and lakes – for ecological and economic health – in many parts of the world. We can reap the same benefits from healthy oceans. We can restore ocean ecosystems that will sustain us, entertain us, amaze us and generate jobs around the world for centuries to come.
WHAT CAN YOU DO ABOUT OCEAN PLASTIC? Reduce plastic use
Take the plastics pledge!
Try to cut down on the number of single-use disposable plastic products you use, like plastic bags and water bottles. Other single-use to short term plastic items to avoid include Styrofoam cups and containers, plastic cutlery and disposable lighters.
Make your commitment to reducing your contribution to ocean pollution by limiting your plastic consumption.
Reuse bags you have Use reusable bags when you go grocery shopping.
Recycle what you can Buy products that are made from recycled materials, as well as those that can be recycled again.
Pick up litter Never litter and make an effort to dispose of litter you find on the street.
Donate! Support our work to protect the oceans by giving today. With your help, we can protect marine life and habitats. Your gift will help ensure the health of our oceans and the future of our planet.
www.oceana.org