Discussion

DISCUSSION

__ **Why is the Great Pacific Garbage Patch a Problem?** __

The Great Pacific Garbage Patch is located in the Pacific Ocean. Due to the high pressure of ocean currents it is concentrated within the North Pacific Subtropical Gyre (Silverman, 2007). The circular effect of the ocean creates an unknown dumping area for garbage. This area is rarely ever traveled to therefore people fail to realize the condition it is in. Refer to APPENDIX A for Garbage Patch locations. Not only does it contain a high amount of phytoplankton but also a million pounds of garbage that gets pushed from all directions of the earth towards this vortex. Since there are several different ocean currents that cover the earth, the gyre has produced two large areas of garbage; the Eastern Garbage Patch and the Western Garbage Patch (Silverman, 2007). An enormous portion of this garbage is plastic. Plastic never breaks down but turns into smaller pieces; this is called photo degradation. Plastic debris affects wildlife and humans because not only do we have the physical garbage floating in the ocean but all the toxins that leaks out especially from plastic waste (Endangered Species International, 2011). In essence this affects marine life and human health. This issue has a direct effect on humans because these toxins can easily travel into groundwater.

The Western Garbage Patch is located between Hawaii and California and the Eastern Garbage Patch is located between Japan and west of Hawaii (Silverman, 2007). Together the size of the patch is said to be twice the size of Texas (Oprah 2009). About 80 percent of the waste that ends up in the vortex comes from land. Visibly, this vortex looks like “plastic soup” where all the debris floats near the surface extending to about 10 meters although heavier waste can be found near the bottom of the ocean. Refer to APPENDIX B. Different parts of the patch contain varying levels of plankton that is a food source for some sea animals. Some areas contain more plastic and the plastic is what some sea animals end up consuming.

__ **What is Plastic?** __ Plastic means different things to different people. In this research paper, plastic will be discussed as a material (SEE APPENDIX C). All materials in the world are broken into three categories; solids, liquids, and gases. Materials that remain solid in room temperature include metals, ceramics, and polymers. A polymer is a large molecule that is made up of smaller molecules and joined together by chemical bonding. As shown in APPENDIX C, polymers can be broken down into natural polymers (chemical bonding occurs naturally) and synthetic polymers (chemical bonding is man-made). Synthetic polymers are considered plastics (What is Plastic, 2010). Plastics are made from crude oil and natural gases (What is Plastic, 2010). Surprisingly, plastic production only uses about 4% of all the oil produced from oil refineries and the rest is used as fuel for transport and heating (What is Plastic, 2010).

“Plastics are now virtually everywhere in our modern society. We drink out of them, eat off them, sit on them, and even drive in them. They’re durable, lightweight, cheap, and can be made into virtually anything” (Moore, 2011).  __ **Why is Plastic Widely Used?** __ One of the biggest contributors to the Great Pacific Garbage Patch is plastic and constitutes 90% of all trash in the world’s oceans (Silverman, 2007). It is important to understand why plastic is commonly used, and why big organizations find it difficult to use biodegradable plastics. The reason that non degradable plastics are widely used include: i) // Excellent protection //** : ** plastic products are strong and light   ii) // Conserves Food: // plastic films, bottles and containers store food and retain freshness as opposed to food left unprotected iii) // Lightweight: // plastic products are lighter and therefore require less fuel to transport them   iv) // Non-toxic: // Plastics are chemically inert materials, meaning they do not change into dangerous chemicals over time v) // High Resource Recovery //** : ** plastic produces more energy than coal and wood when it is incinerated because it comes from crude oil. If plastic is recycled properly, it can be put to good use even after its intended use.   vi) // Cost Effective //** : ** plastic can be manufactured quickly and economically compared to biodegradable plastics vii) // Shelf Life: // plastic does not degrade and therefore proves to be cost effective for the company producing it and the individuals using it.  (What is Plastic, 2010)

__ **The Problem with Plastic?** __ Plastic does not biodegrade, it ‘photo-degrades’ meaning that it is broken down by sunlight into smaller and smaller pieces that are still plastic polymers (Allsopp, 2011). It is unknown how long plastic items remain in their original form and scientists estimate it could take hundreds of years for something as small as a plastic cigarette lighter to break down into simpler compounds (Silverman, 2007). The small pieces of plastic produced by photodegradation are called mermaid tears or nurdles. These small pieces of plastic can be sucked up by filter feeders damaging their bodies, eaten by other animals poisoning them, cause deformities, or even cause death by being caught in plastic (SEE APPENDIX D) (Silverman, 2007). Aside from harming/killing wildlife, plastic and other debris damages boats, harms local fisheries, litter beaches, and discourages swimming (Sliverman, 2007).

__ **How is it Affecting the Eco System and Marine Life?** __ The affected area is located in the Pacific Ocean. The eco community is now referred to as an “oceanic desert” (Grambling, 2009) filled with plankton yet few fish and mammal life. This is caused from extreme pollution mainly comprising of 90% plastic. The ratio for trash to plankton is six to one (Silverman, 2007) creating a hazardous environment for marine life. Due to the current circulation, it is difficult to locate exactly where such debris is coming from. It is estimates that “four fifths of that trash comes from land, swept by wind or washed by rain off highways and streets into seas” (Miller, 2008). By studying the circulation patterns of currents, it may be possible to track down where plastic pollution comes from (Silverman, 2007).

Plastic such as water bottles, toothbrushes, garbage bags and cups do not biodegrade resulting in these objects merely breaking down in to smaller pieces. This is a result of forceful currents as well as physical friction from traveling from beach to ocean (What a Dump, 2009). Toxins that are released from the plastic not only polluting marine life but the aquatic system itself (Pacific Garbage Patch Still Growing, 2008); the overall health of the ocean is deteriorating as the percentage of debris increases. Wildlife is suffering immensely. According to an environment program that was implemented by the United Nations, the digestion of plastics in seabirds contributes to 1 million deaths and 100,000 in marine life. Non-biodegradable debris is described by Eriksen, research director of Algalita Marine Research, can threaten marine life in through:  i) // Entanglement // : Animals get tangled in creating extreme deformities or ultimately death (What a Dump, 2009) (SEE APPENDIX D). ii) Ingestion: The ingestion of plastic debris lodges in organs and again, ultimately leads to death of many species(What a Dump, 2009) (SEE APPENDIX E) iii) Digestion: The process of digestion causes the absorption of oil based chemicals which are poisonous. Tiny pieces of plastics referred to as “mermaid tears” have been found to contain one million times more toxins in the water around them (Doucette, 2009). Chemicals such as PCB and DDT are known to disrupt reproduction in marine mammals; this waste in lodged in the fatty tissue of animals and increase in levels the higher up in the food chain you climb (Doucette, 2009). There is no evidence of these toxins affecting humans through consumption of a marine diet, but these toxins have been linked to liver damage, skin lesions and cancer (What a Dump, 2009).

Wayne Sentman, a field biologist, found a “six lighters in one chick, a complete syringe with a needle, a small flashlight, various small light bulbs, comb and toothbrushes, parts of flip-flops and fishing tackles” (Pacific Garbage Patch Still Growing, 2008). On average, 44 pieces of plastic are found per bird (What a Dump, 2009), weighing over 3 pounds.

Deformities, disabilities and death of marine life are the repercussions of immense amount of plastic entering the eco system. As expressed by Paul Miller, “Our refuse is being consumed by whales, turtles, fish, bottom feeders, zooplankton” (Miller, 2008). These effects can transfer to humans if the proper steps are not taken.

__ **A Biodegradable Solution to Plastic?** __ Decades from now, empty plastic bottles, as well as toys and electronic devices, will still be intact in landfills as well as deep in the oceans. The use of plastic containing synthetic polymers has been an ongoing debate for several years as it poses a serious threat to the environment. The principle of recycling certainly benefits the environment, yet there is no ready solution for the possibility of recyclable products ending up in landfills. Therefore, creating functional commodity plastics that will decompose effectively in any disposal location is the key in maintaining a healthy environment.

The idea is to utilize a material that is relatively similar to the widely-used commodity plastic, with the same look and feel, but biodegradable. In essence, this material should aid the environment by serving as “food for bacteria” //(Kissell, 2005).// An option is //biopolymers//, which falls under the category of cornstarch and other starches or cellulose. NatureWorks is one of the first companies to produce the biodegradable plastic, known as resin polylactic acid, for which they replaced their saran warps, trash bags, packaging and forks with. However, plastics derived from corn can only biodegrade successfully in controlled composting facilities where the plastics are exposed to a temperature of 140 degrees Fahrenheit for ten consecutive days to stimulate the biodegrading process (//Renewable-energy-news.com//).

Conversely, plastic made from hemp, a fiber cultivated from the Cannabis plant, is another effective option that has been around for a number of years. Henry Ford created the first hemp car in 1941; however the notion was not introduced to the market until 1998. In 2001, Hemp Plastics created CD and DVD cases, spice grinders, kitchen scales and musical instruments – all entirely out of hemp plastic (//Renewable-energy-news.com//).In addition, several automotive companies, including Ford and Mercedes, have been using hemp to produce several parts of their cars: fiberglass, door panels and dashboards are composed of compressed hemp fibers (//Hemppowered.com//). Interestingly enough, hemp serves as a potential replacement for oil. Thus far, hemp oil is used in biodegradable soaps and detergents as well as cosmetics as it has the ability to cure skin ailments such as eczema, psoriasis and dry skin //(Coolhemp.com)//

Moreover, feathers are a recent viable alternative to plastic. A large portion of agriculture waste can be justified by the billion tons of chicken feathers relinquished every year from US farms alone. Plastic made from chicken feathers is not only degradable but also exhausts about half the amount of heat and pressure required for traditional plastic. It is quite resilient and degrades “from several months for flower pots to several years for automotive parts” //(Renewable-energy-news.com)//.

Just as humans store fat for energy, bacteria stores a compound known as polyhydroxybutyrate, or PHB, as a source of energy. PHB is another biodegradable substitute for conventional plastic. There are a number of ways of extracting large quantities of this substance: by feeding sugar to the right types of bacteria until it reaches the fermentation process; or it can be garnered from genetically modified plants //(Kissell, 2005).//