The sea of plastic: How to reduce ocean pollution

Reduce ocean pollution

In the USA, only 8% of plastic is recycled. The rest ends up in landfills or it remains uncollected and can wash into the sea, causing ocean pollution. It’s estimated that there are 5.25trillion pieces of plastic in the ocean, with 8million tons being added every single year.

Why do we need to clean up the ocean?


Plastic doesn’t break down very easily so each piece will stay in the ocean for decades. After time, these pieces break down into small particles called microplastics. These are often eaten by fish, seals, turtles and other marine animals as they mistake them for food.

As the smaller fish are eaten by larger predators, the plastic pollutants and harmful chemicals move up the food chain which can lead to poisoned marine life, birds and other animals who live off of the sea. Chemicals which can be released from plastics include mercury and lead. If we humans eat large quantities of fish contaminated with these, we are potentially risking getting sick.

There are other negative consequences of plastic ocean pollution. This includes damaging or confusing navigation systems used on boats and ships, and damaging the nets and equipment of fishermen.

The Great Pacific Garbage Patch

Due to the way the ocean current moves the water, there are area of the ocean that naturally collect large amounts of plastic and other waste. The largest of these is known as the Great Pacific Garbage Patch. Most of the garbage collects under the surface of the water – up to 90 feet deep in places – making it hard to realize its size. Estimates range from between 700,000 square miles (the size of Texas) – 15,000,000 square miles.

All of this trash is having harmful consequences on the sea life there. Plankton, which so many fish (and other marine animals such as whales) depend on as their only food source is slowly dying as it doesn’t get enough energy from the sun due to the litter blocking it out.

A decline in plankton leads to a decline in fish, which may then lead to a decline in the predators that eat those fish – and the effect continues up the food chain.


Introducing the ‘The Ocean Clean Up Project’

The Ocean Clean Up Project was founded by Boyan Slat when he was just 17 years old. He saw a potential to use the naturally occurring ocean current to collect the plastic and trash from the Great Pacific Garbage Patch so that it could be removed and recycled.

In 2012, Slat hosted a TEDx talk where he introduced his concept. His speech went viral and was watched millions of times, leading to a successful crowdfunding campaign which raised $2.5million to start work on the project.

Slat’s idea was to create a floating barrier secured to the ocean floor which uses rotating ocean currents to move debris into specific places where it can be automatically collected into large containers which can then be removed. Solid screens collect the debris, but sea life can pass underneath it.

It’s estimated that the project could completed clear the Great Pacific Garbage Patch in twenty years.

How you can help to reduce plastic pollution


Take litter home with you


Limit your use of plastic bottles


Limit your use of plastic

Plastic is often seen as a cheap yet highly convenient purchasing choice. The “use one then throw away” mentality has become engrained in our culture and that’s not good news for our environment and oceans. Try to limit your use of plastic by investing in reusable items and staying away from “throw away” plastic items such as plastic cutlery, tablecloths, coffee cup lids and grocery bags.

Recycle your plastics

Recycling your plastic means less will end up in landfill, which is great for our planet. Plastic recycling is essential to limit the amount of landfill and it also means that less raw materials will be needed for plastic production.

Stay away from microbeads

Microbeads are tiny plastic beads that can be added to shower and bath products to give an exfoliating effect on the skin. Because the beads are so small, water treatment facilities can’t filter them out so they can end up back in the water system and oceans where they get mistaken for food by fish and other marine life.

What steps to do you to reduce your plastic usage? Are there any tips that you could share with our readers to help them live a reduced-plastic lifestyle? Please share your stories in the comments below.

Image credit: Erwin Zwart/The Ocean Cleanup

Categories: Recycling

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