Imagine a different version of Castaway. This version starts much the same: Tom Hanks crashes and ends up on an island, builds a raft, and sets sail to try and find his way home. He falls asleep as he is rocked by the waves of the vast ocean. But this time, he is suddenly awaken with something clicking and tapping along the side of his raft. Out here in the middle of the ocean, what could he possibly be bumping into? Too excited and terrified to see what he may have encountered, he hesitates before opening his eyes. Is it possible he has reached shore? Has he finally returned home? Has he made it to civilization? The bright sun blinds him and his heart sinks...his hopes of being home washed away. His raft hasn't washed ashore on the beaches of Australia or been brought into a Hawaiian harbor. Instead he has awoken to find his raft caught and now dragging a tangled collection of old fishing net, plastic and trash out in the middle of the Pacific. Cruel reminders of the civilized world he longs for now float here, tangled, useless, poisoning and killing the sea. Nearby, an old kayak floats along with its underbelly covered in barnacles. Not too far off, a blue plastic bottle, appears to be laundry detergent, bobs up and down. And what at first glance looked like a jellyfish turns out to be a plastic bag. The water is sprinkled with fragments of colored plastic that have broken down from their original form, but refuse to decompose. What he doesn't know is that this plastic soup is actually about twice the size of Texas and he will see days more of the world's largest landfill as his raft drifts across the Pacific. He has encountered The Great Pacific Garbage Patch.
What can we do? Inform yourself and others. Recycle as much as possible and opt-out of using plastic, bags and packaging whenever possible. Be conscious of the impact you have on the environment. Get involved and be the difference. :)
1 comments:
Wow. This literally makes me sick. I want to get a giant boat and go out there and gather it all up. Something needs to be done about this... I wonder how we can start making an impact at home (other than recycling and lessening our use of plastics). Do you know if there are any organizations that are working to clean it up? How about volunteer opportunities?
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