Wednesday August 5, 2009, 1:40 am
LOS ANGELES - Marine scientists from California are venturing this week to the middle of the North Pacific for a study of plastic debris accumulating across hundreds of miles (km) of open sea dubbed the "Great Pacific Garbage Patch."

A research vessel carrying a team of about 30 researchers, technicians and crew members embarked on Sunday on a three-week voyage from the Scripps Institution of Oceanography, based at the University of California at San Diego.

The expedition will study how much debris -- mostly tiny plastic fragments -- is collecting in an expanse of sea known as the North Pacific Ocean Gyre, how that material is distributed and how it affects marine life.

The debris ends up concentrated by circular, clockwise ocean currents within an oblong-shaped "convergence zone" hundreds of miles (km) across from end to end near the Hawaiian Islands, about midway between Japan and the West Coast of the United States.

The focus of the study will be on plankton, other microorganisms, small fish and birds.

"The concern is what kind of impact those plastic bits are having on the small critters on the low end of the ocean food chain," Bob Knox, deputy director of research at Scripps, said on Monday after the ship had spent its first full day at sea.

The 170-foot vessel New Horizon is equipped with a laboratory for on-board research, but scientists also will bring back samples for further study.

Little is known about the exact size and scope of the vast debris field discovered some years ago by fishermen and others in the North Pacific that is widely referred to as the "Great Pacific Garbage Patch."

Large items readily visible from the deck of a boat are few and far between. Most of the debris consists of small plastic particles suspended at or just below the water surface, making it impossible to detect by aircraft or satellite images.

The debris zone shifts by as much as a thousand miles north and south on a seasonal basis, and drifts even farther south during periods of warmer-than-normal ocean temperatures known as El Nino, according to information from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).

Besides the potential harm to sea life caused by ingesting bits of plastic, the expedition team will look at whether the particles could carry other pollutants, such as pesticides, far out to sea, and whether tiny organisms attached to the debris could be transported to distant regions and thus become invasive species.

Wednesday August 5, 2009, 2:01 am
The next problem is to find a way to vacuum up all that stuff and clean up the world!

Wednesday August 5, 2009, 2:20 am
This is sad & annoying,my boyfriend & i often pick other peoples rubbish up.

Wednesday August 5, 2009, 2:42 am
Thanks Claudia - I tweeted this.

Wednesday August 5, 2009, 3:15 am
Thanx Claudia. I have heard about this "plastic dump" before. Some of the most bizarre items end up there and the consequences are as yet untallied.

Wednesday August 5, 2009, 3:29 am
thanks claudia i hope they find a way to get it back up

Wednesday August 5, 2009, 3:48 am
A disgusting legacy !

Wednesday August 5, 2009, 4:27 am
Claudia,
This is a very interesting story. And very sad for our loving critters who have to live among the crappy crud its ashame.
I live not far from the Oceanography University in San Diego and they have such interesting displays and information, but you know I must say, I wish someone would get on board here. Talking about plastic and paper in the waters, it seems to be mostly around the docks where the fishermen are. But we can’t let our friendly park goers off the hook. At times leaving there trash behind so when the wind blows it has a great opportunity to find its way to our waters. I have recently brought this to the attention of the city council, and wrote a letter to our Senator. So I have been keeping in contact with the city to see what they are going to do about enforce littering law and our Polluting of our waters. Time is of the essence… Thanks Claudia!!!

Wednesday August 5, 2009, 5:06 am
I am so ashamed for the whole human race that we have used the oceans as a dumping ground, not thinking of the creatures of the oceans it would effect. This news article, especially the picture of the debris brings it home. I try to discard all the plastic containers everything comes in i the US in a proper way but I don't know what happens to it after it leaves the recycling center and that frightens me. The oceans cannot handle any more human refuse. Of that I am sure.

Wednesday August 5, 2009, 5:51 am
Thanks Claudia, so very sad we are hell bent on destroying everything in our path

Wednesday August 5, 2009, 6:33 am
This is a disgrace. It infuriates me so much. People don't care about anything but themselves. Thanks Claudia.

Wednesday August 5, 2009, 6:39 am
All of the above !!!!!!
Thanks Claudia

Wednesday August 5, 2009, 8:31 am
i knew of tjhis before, but have wondered- how thick is it? is it a foot deep, a mile? if it is not very thick then cant it be skimmed off with nets? what is its volume approximatley??

Wednesday August 5, 2009, 9:00 am
All of the above and... my two cents worth: I hope the bring back more than just "samples"! I hope they bring back the whole darn patch (or at least as much as they can get up). Now, what if this had someting to do with the decline in Arctic salmon, we know they live in the Pacific gyre while they are maturing...
Thanks Claudia!

Wednesday August 5, 2009, 9:05 am
Rather than waste time and money to do all that research..I would wish they would just clean it up..and do something to prevent it altogether..
I don't think they really need to study if it is bad for any sea life to ingest all that garbage..or just bad for the ocean..Pretty safe to say that is a given fact..Indeed it does..
Thanks Claudia..
Sadly noted..

Wednesday August 5, 2009, 9:51 am
WHY NOT -TO COMPLETE THE JOB- CLEAN IT ?

Wednesday August 5, 2009, 12:11 pm
Very sad :( Thank you my darling!

Wednesday August 5, 2009, 1:36 pm
Very sad

Wednesday August 5, 2009, 1:55 pm
The companies who make and use plastic should be made to foot the clean-up bill. Maybe all their highly paid executives could get off their butts and organise a clean-up party.

Wednesday August 5, 2009, 2:37 pm
Why doesn't everyone also check out pseudomonis pudita that they dump on Oil Spills in order to bioremediate
Oil. It turns the oil into plastic and kills people too. It is a genetically Altered Nematode. Another Cause of Morgellons

Wednesday August 5, 2009, 2:46 pm
This is an extremely serious problem that is ignored because it is literally "out of sight, out of mind" in the middle of the ocean.

"Unlike debris which biodegrades, the photodegraded plastic disintegrates into ever smaller pieces while remaining a polymer. This process continues down to the molecular level....As it disintegrates, the plastic ultimately becomes small enough to be ingested by aquatic organisms which reside near the ocean's surface. The floating plastic particles resemble zooplankton.... In many areas of the affected region, the overall concentration of plastics was greater than the concentration of zooplankton by a factor of seven... Plastic waste thus enters the food chain through its intense concentration." (from Wikpedia)

I agree with Nora - the plastic manufacturing companies need to be held responsible for the clean-up of this mess. Unfortunately, we know how well that's worked with Exxon....

But at least somebody is trying - "In 2008, Richard Owen, a building contractor and scuba dive instructor, formed the Environmental Cleanup Coalition to address the issue of the pollution of the North Pacific. The ECC plan calls for modifying a fleet of ships to clear the area of debris and form a restoration and recycling laboratory called Gyre Island" It looks like an awesome project! Here's a link to their site:

http://www.gyrecleanup.org/cleanup.html

Thank you,Claudia - noted.

Wednesday August 5, 2009, 3:05 pm
The plastic is recyclable and worth money. Ships have been designed to mine sand by vacuuming it off the ocean floor and redepositing it on beaches, these ships would work well for this job.

Wednesday August 5, 2009, 3:43 pm
Nurdles, make me sick!!!!! We must make the plastic out of industrial hemp, as was the original plan, before the forces of oppression manipulated us. I AM glad to see that WE ARE sealing the door where evil dwells. They are running......

Wednesday August 5, 2009, 4:24 pm
As our education system deteriates, we see the igorance expound into every area that we abuse. If this does not stop, we will not have a need for anything, for we will not exist without ocean and all that sustain us.

Wednesday August 5, 2009, 6:42 pm

That along with overfishing, pesticides, fertilizer and many other things is damaging the oceans beyond repair and if the oceans die, we die.

One problem that doesn't get mentioned in the press is sunscreen, according to Daniel Goleman who has a book titled "Ecological Intelligence" the ingredients in sunscreen prime the growth of a virus in the algae that live inside coral reefs and researchers estimate between 4,000 and 6,000 metric tons of sunscreen wash off swimmers each year around the world, threatening 10 percent of coral reefs.

Live simply, reduce, reuse, recycle.

Wednesday August 5, 2009, 6:42 pm
Ashamed that humans have no regard for other life or where they live! disgusting, sadly noted Claudia

Wednesday August 5, 2009, 7:29 pm
Just a short comment, as this is truly sick, who put this out there???? The birds are being found dead on islands with plastic in their guts, just wonder how many other sea creatures are dead because of this!!!

This is just GREED and DISREGARD at its purest form, DUMP - DUMP - DUMP well, gotta tell ya, there isn't any place else to dump anymore, it is all catching up with everyone...and those who claim that they never knew it just stuck their heads in the sand like a TON OF FOOLS THAT THEY ARE!!!

MOTHER EARTH HAS HAD ENOUGH AND JUST CAN'T TAKE ANYMORE, DON'T PERSONALLY THINK THAT "SHE" WILL RECOVER FROM ALL OF MANKINDS DISREGARD AND GREED!!!

Wednesday August 5, 2009, 9:01 pm
I agree with Marilyn. With so much garbage dumped in oceans and even dumnpsites, space is running out. Humans should recycle, reuse and reduce. It is our responsibilty to take care of mother earth. But in more ways than one, we are doing the opposite. Its great to know that some are doing all they can and their best to save earth's last remaining resources.

Animals are dying becuase of our carelessness, too. Plastic bags, pollution, global warming... and a lot more.

Thanks for the news! Noted

Wednesday August 5, 2009, 10:05 pm
We can recycle plastic here. Not for money, but at least it's not being thrown all over. I pick up plastic trash whenever I see it laying around.
Poor critters. Makes me sick!
Tks dear Claudia

Wednesday August 5, 2009, 11:14 pm
How frightening and appalling!

Wednesday August 5, 2009, 11:50 pm
Thanks Claudia for the story

Thursday August 6, 2009, 8:08 am
Why is it they always find the money for research but when it comes to the clean up they come up shorthanded? Quit paying these scientists to study what we already know. The Oceans and everything in it are dying and no amount of research will help. Cleaning up the oceans and our human laziness will be the only solution.

Sunday August 9, 2009, 6:54 am
The majority of this waste is oil based plastics from containers, mostly water bottles. Please view the documentary Tapped and you will see that we can prevent this plastic waste...by not buying our municipal water in plastic bottles a massive fraud that not only gives corporations like Nestles, Coke, Pepsi the right to take our water for virtually nothing and sell it back to us at huge markups...we are our own worst enemy...STOP BUYING WATER IN BOTTLES...LESS THAN 20% OF THESE BOTTLES ARE RECYCLED...WE ARE WASTING OIL...AND DESTROYING THE OCEAN AND LAND WITH PLASTIC WASTE...ONE POSSIBLE SOLUTION TO THE PLASTIC GARBAGE IN THE OCEAN IS TO CREATE WTE ON COASTAL SITES AND SHIP THE PLASTICS TO BE BURNT FOR ENERGY...

Sunday August 9, 2009, 2:42 pm
better to recycle than burn

Wednesday August 12, 2009, 2:11 pm
I've heard about this garbage dump before. It is disgusting. I have a friend who use to go deep sea diving by Catalina and you could see the mass of white and it turns out that they are baby diapers that are thrown in our waters and accumulate. They still make these diapers and they shouldn't. I think they should just use the old diapers, everything is for our convenience with no thought of the results. So disgusting. Now so many buy bottled water (I use to) and this is also filling up our landfills and oceans. We are in deep trouble.