The NY Times article Afloat in the Ocean, Expanding Islands of Trash discusses the increase amount of trash found in the Pacific Ocean northeast of Hawaii that is compiling in a swirling current. Oceanographers call this area a gyre, which is an area of heavy currents and slack winds that keep the trash swirling in a giant whirlpool. Overtime these gyres will break and look like confetti in the water. Most of the trash cannot dissolve in water and several fish end up digesting them. For example fish that feed on plankton ingest the plastic particles and scientists have now found these particles inside the fish tissues. These toxics are then being transferred to larger predators, and the particles replicate faster as there are multiple food sources. Fishermen believe that these patches of plastic and other wastes are everywhere throughout the ocean, hurting the environment by polluting the water. The article ends with a quote "just a reminder that there's nowhere that isn't affected by humanity."
Posted by Kaitlin Hayes
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