Wastenot February 23, 2016

THE GREAT PACIFIC GARBAGE PATCH

Simply put, the Great Pacific Garbage patch is a swirling mass of plastic in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. Research suggests that it is almost double the size of Texas and will qualify as the world's largest landfill. All sources of water lead out to the ocean, so any trash that reaches the shoreline is then pushed out by ocean currents. Currents tend to move in a circular pattern, known as a gyre.

These wind-driven currents push water (and pollution) towards the center of the basin. After sunlight photodegrades the plastic into tiny pieces, aquatic life and seabirds mistake these fragments for food and ingest it. This brings into question the quality of our seafood and whether or not the plastic eaten by fish is now affecting us directly through human consumption of contaminated fish.