Plastic Polluted Ocean - Blog Action Day

Today is Blog Action Day and the subject is the environment. It’s a movement to get as many bloggers as they can all blogging about the same thing on the same day. So far there are 15,000 blogs all around the world writing about the environment, and I am going to be another one.

I’m pretty passionate about the environment when I stop and think about it. I mean, I can read stories about entire species going into extinction, or stories of how many plants are dying because of urban sprawl, and it physically will upset me. Yet at the same time, I completely forget about these things and throw away aluminum and paper that can easily be recycled. I am ashamed of myself, I really am. There is no excuse for my laziness, and there is no excuse for yours. In fact, if this story doesn’t impact the way you purchase products, and the way you dispose of your garbage, I don’t know what will.

In the middle of the Pacific Ocean is a vortex of plastic. It is sometimes referred to as the North Pacific Garbage Patch, and it’s main occupant is plastic. So much plastic that this patch is as big as the state of Texas. It is made up of everything from tiny pieces of plastic debris to large nets lost by the fishing industry.

300 billion pounds of plastic is produced around the world every year, and only a fraction of this is recycled. The rest ends up in landfills, or in the streets clogging up the drain gutters, and eventually making it’s way to the ocean. Plastic is made to last for hundreds of years, and it’s doing just that. Floating in a big pile in the middle of the Pacific Ocean.

Plastic is often mistaken for food and has been found inside marine life of all sizes, from whales to zooplankton. It has been directly blamed for the death of a wide range of animals including albatrosses and sea turtles. They see the plastic floating in the water and they think it’s food. This leads them to die from digestive trouble and even starvation. Their bellies are full, but it’s full of plastic, not the nutritious food they thought they were eating to stay alive.

Oh it just makes me sick to my stomach thinking about it, and I need to make an effort to really change my habits. Here are a few things that will make a difference, especially if every single one of us does their part.

• Every time you see litter, pick it up and dispose of it properly.
• Reduce, Reuse, Recycle – you’ve heard it before, but now you know what happens when you don’t. Be conscious of all that you buy, and be sure to avoid products with excessive packaging, especially in disposable products.
• Demand more and better recycling facilities in your area.
• Take part in local stream, river and beach cleanups - or organize one yourself. Though these don’t solve the problem, they are very effective at drawing attention to the greater problem offshore.
• If you live near the ocean, or a river that drains into it, your storm drains are probably washing garbage right out to sea. Be conscious of this and any other potential sources of marine litter in your area. Demand that these are eliminated.
• Be very conscious of your ecological footprint. Encourage change though your decisions and do no accept the current paradigm of use and waste.

It’s a group effort guys! Who’s willing to change their habits with me?

Blog Action Day, environment, pollution, oceans, plastic pollution