Month: January 2019

The Great Pacific Garbage Patch. Some of you might be familiar with this. I have never even heard of it until one of my professors started talking about current events regarding the ocean.

The Great Pacific Garbage Patch is located halfway between California and Hawaii. Its waters contain the most offshore plastic in the world. It is roughly three times the size of France. Could you imagine this accumulation of trash in the ocean that is three times the size of a country? 1.15 to 2.41 million tonnes of plastic enter the ocean each year. How does all this trash get into the Great Pacific Garbage Patch? Currents transport the pollution to the North Pacific Subtropical Gyre, where the Great Pacific Garbage Patch is. A gyre is a slowly moving, clockwise spiral of currents created by a high-pressure system of air currents. Once the plastic enters the gyre, it is highly unlikely for the plastics to leave the area once they enter the gyre. It is difficult and takes a significant amount of time for these plastics to degrade. The Great Pacific Garbage Patch will only increase as we discard more plastic into the environment.

A majority of the GPGP consists of plastic. Another portion of the GPGP consists of fishing nets. As the Mother Nature Network reported, “the rest comes largely from recreational boaters, offshore oil rigs and large cargo ships, which drop about 10,000 steel shipping containers into the sea each year, full of things like hockey gloves, computer monitors, resin pellets and LEGOs.” It is terrible and selfish for us humans to be just dumping trash into the ocean, the home to many marine life.

Image by Mot Mag

The pollution in the GPGP is dangerous to ocean life in many ways. The impact it has on wildlife is severe. Animals might confuse the pollution as food; their life and existence are at risk. Marine life who live in the area or travel by are more than likely to accidentally consume the pollution. The Ocean Cleanup reported that “sea turtles by-caught in fisheries operating within and around the patch can have up to 74% (by dry weight) of their diets composed of ocean plastics.” When marine animals consume the pollution, they are consume the chemicals that have been found in the pollution. Another thing that results from the GPGP is entanglement. Many fishermen use plastic nets, especially those in developing countries because they are cheap and durable. They are often known as ghost nets because they are hard to see in the dim light. Unfortunately, these nets often are abandoned and end up in the GPGP where some poor animal could get tangled into. Sea turtles are especially vulnerable to this. From plastic straws to plastic nets, the turtles just can’t seem to get a break. It is just horrible what is happening to these poor animals. 

Image by Francis Perez

Not only does the GPGP impact marine life, but it also affects us humans too. The harmful plastics and chemicals that marine life ingest can contaminate the human food chain. The chemicals that marine life ingest can pass onto the predator that eats it (for all you seafood lovers out there). Our economy is also affected. The United Nations reported that “the approximate environmental damage caused by plastic to marine ecosystems represents 13 billion USD.”

The problem with trying to cleanup the GPGB is the financial costs associated with it. Oceanographer Charles Moore said that a cleanup effort “would bankrupt any country and kill wildlife in the nets as it went.”

Currently, there are some solutions in process of being developed. A project is being led by a 25 year old from Netherland called Boyan Slat who is passionate about finding a way to clean up the ocean. He founded the nonprofit the Ocean Cleanup and came up with idea of a giant, floating trash collector. The device consists of a pipe, 4 feet in diameter and 1,969 feet in length.  As National Geographic explains, “it will be placed on the surface of the water in the shape of a U with a screen skirt that hangs below the surface. It moves slowly through the water, driven by currents and winds, and can capture plastics on the surface, as well as debris almost 10 feet below the surface. If the device performs as designed, 60 additional booms will be deployed.” There is a concern of durability against the elements. While Slat’s idea has been met with criticism, it is a step in the right direction, whether people focus on the prevention or the cleanup.

Image by The Ocean Cleanup

 

 

I was at dance two years ago when I went out to the waiting room for a water break. When I came back in, the teacher was frantic and telling everyone not to drink the water because Pittsburgh American Water issued a 48 hour warning to several communities around Pittsburgh that the water had high levels of turbidity; they advised not to drink any water from the tap unless it has been boiled for at least one minute. It was still safe to still takes showers, brush your teeth, or cook food. As LENNTECH explains, “turbidity is a measure of the degree to which the water loses its transparency due to the presence of suspended particulates. The more total suspended solids in the water, the murkier it seems and the higher the turbidity. It is considered as a good measure of the quality of water.” Because of the high levels of turbidity, there was an higher chance that the water might contain disease-causing organisms. As Triblive reported, “symptoms include, nausea, cramps, diarrhea, and headaches. People with weakened immune systems, such as infants and some elderly people, may be at increased risk.” To my family this did not seem like a big deal. We always boil our water even before this warning. We have one of those water boiler dispensers. My mom always boiled our water for drinking because she thought it was safer and cleaner. However, this was not the case with everyone else. From Instagram to Snapchat to Twitter, everyone I knew was freaking out over the fact that the water was “bad.” Stores were ransacked for bottled water. People were buying packs after packs of them. By the end of the night, stores were sold out of water. It looked like an apocalypse has occurred.

Image by Karen Pryslopski

There were even a few schools that shut down because of it. My school remained open, but when I went in the next day, there were these huge trash bags over every single water fountain. It looked liked crazy.

It is interesting to see how we acted when we did not have clean water for only two days when the people living in Flint, Michigan have been dealing with unclean water for the last few years.

As CNN reports in their timeline, the Flint Water Crisis began in 2014 when the city switched its water source from Lake Huron to the Flint River. Later that year, Flint issues a warning that the water tested positive for total coliform bacteria, which meant that the water was contaminated with human and animal waste. A few days later, residents were told it was safe to drink from the tap. A brief was issued outlining possible causes for the contamination, which included: leaky pipes and aging cast iron pipes that were likely to have a buildup of bacteria. It was concluded that flushing the systems and using more chlorine in the water could be a solution. Unfortunately, there were concerns with the chlorine corroding engine parts, so General Motors stopped using the city’s water and opted for water from Laker Huron costing the city a significant amount of money.

 

Image by Steve Carmody/Michigan Radio

Then in early 2015, it came out that the water contain byproducts of disinfectants that may cause an increase risk for cancer. While it was deemed safe for the public to drink the water, young children and the elderly should consult with their doctors. Flint was offered to reconnect the city with Lake Huron water, but city officials declined claiming that water rates could go up more than 12 million dollars per year. The discolored water was being hauled by residents to a community forum and children were suffering from rashes and illnesses. Then, dangerous levels of lead were detected in the water at the home of one of Flint’s residents in which the Environmental Protection Agency quickly reported. A preliminary report indicated that 40% of Flint homes had high lead levels. In October, “three schools in Flint tested positive for dangerous lead levels in the water.” Finally the governor said that they will discontinue using the Flint River as a water source. The city switches back to water from Detroit.

What these two incidents reveal is the value of clean water to us as humans. Water is a necessity. We all need it to survive. It needs to be realized that water is a finite resource. Just because we always have easy access to water does not mean we have an endless supply of it. As a society, we have a duty to keep our water clean, whether it be the ocean, rivers, or ponds. Water is valuable and helps sustains life. We not only need to keep it clean, but we also should conserve the use of water. It is not only a resource for humans, but it is also a resource to other organisms, some whose habitats are in water. 

Image by Shutterstock

 

We all have seen this video that went viral of a turtle with a straw in its nose. Its nose is bleeding and it is crying for help while a marine biologist is removing the straw from its nose. It is heartbreaking to see such suffering from something that humans had a hand in. You can see how this affected society by some of these comments. GD Cryptic said “This is so hard to watch. I feel so bad for the turtle.” While Exotics Liar said “That is so sad..We are literally the worst species to be on this planet. All we are doing is killing the world.” While it is good that we actually have sympathy and are acknowledging our wrongs, it is still sad that it took the suffering of a poor turtle for us to final realize that we need to do something. Plastic straws are a huge problem. According to a study done by Science Advances, there are more than 8.3 billion plastic straws polluting the environment. Our actions are producing real consequences, and we are causing severe destruction. The video of the turtle sparked an outrage throughout the community that caused corporations to take a stand. Thus, comes the plastic draw ban. 

It was so impactful that many corporations and even cities are coming up with solutions to reduce waste. Starbucks actually is planning to get rid of its plastic straws entirely by 2020 and replacing their lids with ones that are recyclable. They are called Nitro lids and work like sippy cups, so no straw is needed.                                                                      

 

 

 Image by WFMY News 2 

I actually work at Starbucks and I can say that that the speed of the transition was astounding. Not even a week after they announced the news, our location started using the recyclable lids. I am really proud of our location for taking such quick action in protecting our environment. Even customers were asking and requesting that they wanted the lids that were more eco-friendly. Starbucks has said that “the planet is our most important business partner.” The planet’s resources and life is finite. People often do not realize that because it is not something that can be easily distinguished. Starbucks is really committed in protecting the environment. You can see everything they are doing for the environment on their page. Fortunately, we are starting to realize that the damage we are causing to the environment is permanent and are fixing our mistakes. People are even changing their lifestyle to being more environmentally friendly, because they have been impacted in such a way. A movement that calls for banning plastic straws is gaining support. McDonald’s has also expressed their concerns for the environment and are working on creating alternatives to plastic straws. Cities with denser populations, such as New York City have pending legislation that calls for plastic straws to be banned. Recently, Seattle has become one of the first major cities to ban plastic straws along with San Francisco.

Major airlines also have joined the movement. American Airlines is the first major airline implement a ban on plastic straws. They will use biodegradable options instead. They have already started the process of phasing out plastic straws with ones made out of bamboo. Alaska Airlines are getting rid of their plastic stirring straws and replacing them with citrus picks. They are also providing the option of non-plastic drinking straws for customers that request for them. United Airlines has also joined by eliminating their plastic straws and cocktail picks. They also chose to use the material bamboo as an alternative.

 

Image by John Gress/Getty Images

There is more power in numbers. It is great that these big corporations are using their popularity and influence to not only educate, but also promote and put into use the idea of getting rid of/reducing plastic straws.

The ban on plastic straws is a step in the right direction. We have to continue to be active in keeping our environment clean. Do not just feel bad every time you see a poor animal suffering from pollution. Try to do something about it.

It is important for people to be award of this problem, because otherwise it defeats the efforts that are being made to solve the problem. I cannot tell you the numerous times that people have came into Starbucks and then put a straw in the Nitro lids that are meant to be strawless. It is important to educate people at times like this about such problems, so they do not continue doing it.

There might be some that are upset with the efforts to reduce or get rid of plastic straws. What are we going to drink Frappuccinos or other similar drinks that require straws? There are several solutions to this issue. Many companies are in the process of developing a more eco- friendly straw that is biodegradable made out of paper or compostable plastic. Others are working on creating a reusable straw that can be cleaned instead of thrown away.

Image by Lulu + MOO