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A Sea of Rubbish: More than Meets the Eye

by Biol. Oscar S. Aranda Mena |

Living in a Sea of Garbage
In recent years, scientific studies have shown that the garbage in the oceans has become a major and complex pollution problem, with serious effects on the environment and sea life, as well as affecting the economy, maritime navigation and overall health. While it is not known exactly how much garbage reaches our shores, and that represents only a small portion of the total generated, as much garbage sinks or is buried in transit.
There is an international campaign each year throughout September, coordinating thousands of volunteers worldwide to collect garbage from the bottom and the shores of lakes, rivers and beaches in over 100 countries. In 2008 they recovered 3,400 tons of trash, 70 tons of which could be traced to Mexico, but it does not represent even half of the waste generated each year. It is known that over 60% of the garbage on the beaches is generated in the same places as recreation and another 30% is almost exclusively cigarette butts and cigarette packages.
Where are you going to stop so much garbage? On land, the garbage can travel many miles by wind, but on water it can be transported hundreds of miles to finally reach the sea. In the sea it is transported by wind and currents for hundreds or thousands of miles. Most of the garbage that floats is trapped at a site in the North Pacific Ocean (north of Hawaii), where sea currents and winds create a natural whirlpool where waste can not escape. This has created an island of garbage hundreds of miles across, out of site for most people, but causing thousands of deaths of marine animals incapable of distinguishing whether or not bits of plastic are food.

Connected with the Oceans
Humans are intimately linked to the oceans and forget how important it is to our daily lives. The oceans are the moderators of climate and humidity generators that allow rain. They are the main lungs of the planet and, aside from providing food for millions; the oceans absorb a large amount of air pollutants and water.
So far, we still believe that the ocean will always have the capacity to withstand and absorb everything we throw out, regardless of the amount. We must bear in mind that climate change begins at sea and all that lives in the ocean are absorbing the same pollutants, making marine life so contaminated that is increasingly unfit for human consumption.

Eyes That Do Not See ...
Unfortunately, human awareness is far from a reality. Clean and litter-free beaches allow us to live a clean and tidy fantasy. In our bay the sea absorbs tons of waste, composed primarily of refuse carried to it by the rivers from the surrounding towns, causing the unsightly "red tides". While our governments are making efforts to certify some beaches that are not even the most popular, the issue of sewage treatment and control of where the pollutants originate has been forgotten. While pollution is the result of our lifestyle and poor monitoring by the authorities, the real solution is awareness and environmental education. Until we realize the true extent of environmental degradation in which we live, nothing good can come about. At least, if we reduce, handle and dispose of our waste properly, it would not be exposed to the elements and could not reach a river or the ocean, where it would very likely end up in the stomach of some unfortunate animal attracted to an appetizing color. Let us then do our bit, to become part of the solution, instead of the cause of the problem.

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