The Great Pacific Garbage Patch

When we think of proper waste disposal, we think of making sure our trash goes in the bin. After it is out of our hands, we couldn't bother to wonder where that piece of trash will go, or whether it will be 'properly disposed'. Most of the time our waste goes into landfills, but sometimes they get dumped into the ocean. And when they do, chances are they accumulate into the Great Pacific Garbage Patch (GPGP).

The GPGP is located between Hawaii and California, and is a simply humongous island of trash spanning over 1.6 million square kilometers. To put that to scale, it is more than twice the size of Texas! Plastic accumulates here because of ocean currents, and gradually over time, it has become a huge mass that is not going to clear on its own accord. There are cleanups working towards helping this mess, but without raising awareness, who's going to stop us from doing it again? 

A person might ask: 'Why should I care if the ocean has trash in it? I can live without fish, so I don't need it.' 

Little do they realize how wrong their statement would be. I have already made a post on how important the ocean is to Earth, but it can briefly be concluded that we would not have oxygen, a place to live, or life itself. Life without the ocean simply cannot be, and humankind must come to accept that.

We have to stop prancing around the planet like we own the place, dumping garbage in any place that feels right. The ocean is not a trash bin, it is a biome of life.

Even if in the future, the ocean returns to its former glory, will humans be willing to change their way of living to prevent another disaster? If not, we may not have a choice.

Sadly, cleaning the ocean is just a start. To fully solve the problem, lifestyle will change.

Plastic will be abolished.

New biodegradables will be introduced.

Trees will be planted.

Waste disposal will be monitored.

But the more trash we produce, the bigger change we bring upon ourselves.

And this change will happen someday.

The question is:

Are you prepared?

  

Image Credits: https://www.flickr.com/photos/kevinkrejci/4408273247