By Lauren Shanahan & Sean Reilly
Did you know that nearly every piece of plastic that was ever created is still on this planet today? And the majority of it finds its way into our oceans? Plastic bags, plastic bottles, plastic forks, even your old collection of Ninja Turtle action figures end up in a salty plastic soup. These are not the kinds of waters we want to be swimming and surfing in.
Equatorial currents have taken millions of pieces of floating plastic and concentrated them into a swirling trash vortex between Hawaii and California. This particular vortex of ocean currents is known as the North Pacific Gyre and is one of five major oceanic gyres. Five years ago scientists believed that a trash vortex the size of Texas had gathered in the North Pacific Gyre. Today it is estimated to be the size of the continental United States. All five oceanic gyres are believed to contain plastic.
“The Pacific Trash Vortex is now the size of the continental United States.”
Many people envision a giant floating island of plastic; however this is not the case. There are no visible islands of trash anywhere; instead imagine an ocean soup laced with plastic and chemical sludge. But just because we don’t see the damage in our immediate ocean surroundings, doesn’t mean it’s not there.
“Scientists estimate that there are 46,000 pieces of plastic in every square mile of ocean.”
This number continues to soar with an increase in manufactured plastics each year. More than 60 billion tons of plastic are produced each year, and less than 5% of that is ever recycled. Twenty billion pounds of plastic end up in the seas this year alone. Many believe the Pacific Ocean trash vortex is a bigger issue than any war, economic, or ecologic crisis facing the planet today.
The 2012 New York Times article, “A World Without Coral Reefs”, stated that in 20 years our world could end up with no coral reefs, which means our oceans will revert back to the primordial sludge they were before creatures walked on land. This article is quoted in the critically acclaimed, multi-nominated documentary, Aqua Seafoam Shame, which details the shocking reality about plastics. Aqua Seafoam Shame held its Editor’s Cut World Premiere at Surfer the Bar on Oahu’s North Shore on May 31st, 2013.
Film director Veronica Grey (a.k.a. The Surf Lady) and producer Kim Chiasson, in association with Hope Studios, bring us the first-ever feature-length film shot on an iPhone 4, regarding the ugly truth about plastics in our ocean. Twenty-five percent of the earth’s surface is diagnosed as garbage landfill. The amount of plastics in the ocean has caused the man-made material to begin leaking into the food chain and will continue to negatively affect wildlife, human health, and the environment. The actuality of plastics overtaking our oceans is very real and needs our attention.
“25% of the earth’s surface is being used as garbage landfill while only 11% is used to grow our foods.”