Make no mistake about it: plastic waste is a huge problem and one that has been posing a very serious threat to our oceans for decades. What’s worse is that there hasn’t been any real strides made into solving the problem; while recycling and better waste disposal are on the up, so is our rate of plastic consumption. Around the world, we still only recycle around 1% of our unwanted plastic – an alarming amount of the remained ends up in landfill, and a depressing 10% of it ends up in the world’s oceans.(more…)
Wind pushes plastics deeper into oceans, driving trash estimates up
Decades of research into how much plastic litters the sea may have only skimmed the surface. A new study reveals that wind drives confetti-sized pieces of plastic debris deeper underwater than previously believed, more than doubling earlier estimates of the pollutant’s presence in oceans.
“In windy conditions the traditional approach to measuring plastic marine debris captures only a small fraction of plastic pieces,” said Tobias Kukulka, assistant professor of physical ocean science and engineering in the University of Delaware’s College of Earth, Ocean, and Environment. “Our study helps to better understand how much plastic there is and where, as well as the complexity of the ocean dynamics at work.” (more…)
