PLASTIC POLLUTION IN THE OCEAN:
Capt. Charles Moore with Marine Debris - 2008 Voyage
Gwen Lattin
Director, Laboratory Research Algalita Marine Research Institute www.algalita.org
Expeditions to the middle of the Pacific Ocean
Where is it going?
Our Study Area
6 Gyre Voyages 1999 – Initial Manta sampling to quantify plastic 2000 – New Manta sampling sites 2002 – New Manta sampling sites + Bongo 10 m & 30 m 2005 – New Manta sampling sites + plastic collected for POPs analysis + deploy tracking system on nets for NOAA 2006 – New sampling sites + small net 2007/08 – New sampling sites + Bongo 100 m + plastic and water samples for POPs analysis + repeat 1999 sampling stations + fish for ingestion study and POPs analysis
THE MANTA TRAWL
Bongo Nets
Cod end of Sampling Net
Particles sorted by size: > 4.7 mm to .33 mm
Plastic is Everywhere – Slide courtesy Dr. Richard Thompson
HAWAII
Canada Canada
England, England UK England
Sweden Sweden
United States
Japan Japan
Hawaii
China
Philippines
Litter left by tourists
Venezuela Venezuela
Antarctica Antarctica
Floating plastic bag
Tanzania Tanzania
Philippines New New Zealand ZealandBeach cleanup
2003 Watershed Study – Plastic Debris Rivers to Sea
DRY CONDITIONS
LIGHT RAIN CONDITIONS
HEAVY RAIN CONDITIONS
What are the impact of plastic in the environment?
A boaters nightmare Plastic debris clogs vessel intakes and tangles propellers. Costs millions of dollars in damage every year.
TOURISM $: No one likes trashy beaches
?
Breakfast for the birds
Laysan Albatross Satellite Tracking
Guadalupe Tern Island Incubating & Early Brood Rearing Adults 2003 Shaffer, Tremblay, Henry unpublished data Census of Marine Life, Tagging of Pacific Pelagics
Ingested plastic particle appears to be near maximum possible size
Cover and Protection
Colonized Plastic Particle attracts foragers and transports food
Marine Debris and the “taxi effect”
Marine “taxi� for invasive species: non-biodegradables cross oceans
Benthic interference: Gas exchange inhibited Organisms smothered
Plastics inundate coastal fish nurseries and nesting sites
It’s all part of the food web
RESEARCH: 2008 ALBATROSS STUDIES Laysan Albatross
Black-footed Albatross
RESEARCH: 2008 FISH STUDIES
Stomach contents of a Myctophid
Organic Material
Plastic Fragments
Marcus Eriksen and Joel Pascal sailed to Hawaii on 15,000 plastic bottles and a Cessna 310, to raise awareness about plastic fouling our oceans. June 1 – Aug. 27, 2008
2,600 miles of open ocean crossed in 87 days
Rainbow Runner
ALGALITA MARINE RESEARCH FOUNDATION
www.algalita.org