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Plastics in the Marine Environment

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Plastics in the Marine Environment PlasticsPlastics inin thethe PlasticPlastic SeaSea——thethe PacificPacific GyreGyre MarineMarine EnvironmentEnvironment AA CollaborativeCollaborative PresentationPresentation ALGALITA MARINE RESEARCH FOUNDATION Long Beach, CA. www.algalita.org Plastic!Plastic! --DurableDurable --LightweightLightweight --CheapCheap --VersatileVersatile Throwaway Living Life Magazine, 1955 PlasticPlastic isis PersistentPersistent •• PlasticPlastic doesndoesn’’tt biodegradebiodegrade •• PlasticPlastic photodegradesphotodegrades •• NoNo bacteriabacteria existsexists whichwhich cancan digestdigest plasticplastic polymerspolymers PlasticPlastic ProductionProduction inin thethe UnitedUnited StatesStates 2004 115 billion pounds (ACC, 2005) 1992 60 billion pounds (EPA,1992) InIn aa ““ThrowawayThrowaway”” society,society, wherewhere isis ““AWAYAWAY””?? Of the more than 50 million tons of thermoplastics produced in the U.S. annually, 25%, or 12.5 ? million tons, is unaccounted for. (California Integrated Waste Management 25% Board, “Plastics White Paper” 2003) Municipal Recycled Waste 5% 50% Nine-fold increase of plastic in Durable Goods municipal waste in the U.S. 20% between 1970-2003 (USEPA, 2003) HereHere isis ““AWAYAWAY”” 60-80% of marine debris worldwide is plastic (Derraik, 2002) HAWAII Canada Canada England,EnglandEngland UK SwedenSweden United States JapanJapan Hawaii China Philippines Litter left by tourists Venezuela Floating plastic bag Antarctica Tanzania Philippines New ZealandBeach cleanup Venezuela Antarctica Tanzania Slide: Dr. Richard Thompson WhereWhere doesdoes plasticplastic marinemarine debrisdebris originate?originate? 20% Shipping, fishing, illegal dumping 80% Runoff from world’s watersheds So,So, howhow doesdoes allall thatthat plasticplastic getget fromfrom herehere…… Calgary Municipal Dump Unknown Asian River ToTo here?here? OceanOcean GyresGyres NorthNorth PacificPacific GyreGyre Study Area: Eastern Garbage Patch (approx. 1 million sq.mi.) AlgalitaAlgalita MarineMarine ResearchResearch FoundationFoundation ExpeditionsExpeditions toto thethe NorthNorth PacificPacific GyreGyre TheThe MantaManta TrawlTrawl 333 micron mesh net with a (.9m x 20cm) aperture AverageAverage weightweight ofof plasticplastic isis 66 timestimes greatergreater thanthan thethe surfacesurface biomassbiomass EstimatedEstimated massmass ofof plasticplastic inin thethe NorthNorth PacificPacific isis 3.53.5 millionmillion tonstons Small particles of plastic (< 5mm) are ingested by zooplankton and other filter-feeding organisms. Pre-production Plastic Pellets (nurdles) Adsorb Persistent Organic Pollutants POPs POPs adsorb onto plastic particles (Persistent Organic Pollutants) ¾ Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) They’re mixtures of up to 209 individual chlorinated compounds (known as congeners) used as flame retardants. ¾ Organo- Chlorine Pesticides They include DDT which was a major pesticide used in agriculture until it was banned. ¾ Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAH’s) PAH’s are a group of over 100 different chemicals that are formed during the incomplete burning of coal, oil and gas, garbage, or other organic substances like tobacco or charbroiled meat. PAHs are found in coal tar, crude oil, creosote, and roofing tar, plastics, and pesticides. OneOne prepre--productionproduction plasticplastic pelletpellet cancan havehave upup toto 11 millionmillion timestimes higherhigher concentrationconcentration ofof POPsPOPs thanthan anan equalequal volumevolume ofof seawater.seawater. (Takada,(Takada, 2001)2001) InternationalInternational PelletPellet WatchWatch Dr.Dr. HideshigeHideshige TakadaTakada TokyoTokyo UniversityUniversity ofof AgricultureAgriculture andand TechnologyTechnology Global Monitoring of Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) using Beached Plastic Resin Pellets. InternationalInternational PelletPellet WatchWatch Participants collect plastic resin pellets on their nearby beaches and mail them to Dr. Takada Beach in Hong Kong ImpactImpact ofof PelagicPelagic PlasticsPlastics (8)(8) 1 Public Perception: eyesore, health hazard, less tourism (Kamilo Beach, Hawaii – Feb. 2006) 2 Entanglement: drowning, strangulation, ghost nets 3 Ingestion: food mimic PlasticPlastic debrisdebris impactsimpacts moremore thanthan 267267 speciesspecies worldwideworldwide (Derraik,2002) 44 HostHost forfor invasiveinvasive species:species: plasticsplastics crosscross oceansoceans 55 POPs:POPs: PersistentPersistent organicorganic pollutantspollutants adsorbadsorb ontoonto plasticsplastics 66 BenthicBenthic interference:interference: GasGas exchangeexchange inhibitedinhibited andand organismsorganisms smotheredsmothered 77 MarineMarine nurseries:nurseries: PlasticsPlastics inundateinundate coastalcoastal fishfish nurseriesnurseries andand nestingnesting sitessites 88IndustrialIndustrial Nuisance:Nuisance: clogsclogs vesselvessel intakesintakes andand propsprops WhatWhat cancan wewe dodo aboutabout allall this?this? UseUse andand modelmodel thethe behaviorbehavior ofof change:change: Reduce our purchase and disposal of single use plastics WhatWhat areare othersothers doingdoing ~~ BanningBanning andand ReducingReducing thethe useuse ofof PlasticPlastic BagsBags 2002: Ireland passed a tax on plastic bags, 20 cents each 2007: San Francisco first US city to ban use of plastic bags 2008: Starting this summer, China will prohibit sellers from passing out free plastic bags (no fee determined yet) Also: Australia, Bangladesh, Italy, South Africa, Taiwan and Mumbai, India. The following US cities are considering a ban: Boston; Baltimore; Oakland; Portland; Santa Monica; and Steamboat Springs. PublicPublic EducationEducation andand ConsumerConsumer ResponsibilityResponsibility ¾ PublicPublic EducationEducation CampaignsCampaigns ¾ School/PublicSchool/Public ProgramsPrograms RecycleRecycle oror ““DowncycleDowncycle””?? •5% of plastic produced enters recycling centers (CIWMB, 2003) •Plastic is “downcycled” to lesser grade products (lumber, carpeting) •Recycled plastic is not cheaper than virgin plastic. •Low-temp melting of plastic deters contaminant removal. BiodegradableBiodegradable PlasticsPlastics Non-petroleum plastics are biodegradable, but require a hot,aerated, microbe-rich environment. Plastics in the cold, microbe-poor marine environment degrade slowly. Current cost is higher for foamed bioplastic cups that replace foamed polystyrene, but other bioplastic alternative products are economically comparable. InIn PugetPuget SoundSound ~~ “Approximaltely 75% of the floatables end up on 10% of the beaches.” Dr. Curt Ebbesmeyer retired oceanographer and international flotsom expert PTMSC is looking for funding to conduct trawl sampling to determine plastic concentrations at various locations in Puget Sound. PreliminaryPreliminary BeachBeach SamplingSampling inin 20072007 onon PugetPuget SoundSound BeachesBeaches AreAre plasticplastic fragmentsfragments accumulatingaccumulating onon ourour beaches?beaches? Opportunistic, random sampling at public access locations, looking at pieces 1mm-5mm in size (1/4 inch), using Algalita’s protocol Types of Plastic Pellets - pre-production plastic pellets, also called “nurdles.” Fragments - hard plastic debris that is unrecognizable. Films - debris, such as pieces of bags or wrappers. Foam - Styrofoam and insulation. Filament - fishing line, rope, or synthetic cloth. Cigarette parts - butts and filters. Other - glass, rubber, and metal. PlasticPlastic PollutionPollution AwarenessAwareness forfor PugetPuget SoundSound CommunitiesCommunities andand SchoolsSchools WeWe CANCAN makemake aa difference!difference! PlasticPlastic PollutionPollution AwarenessAwareness MonitoringMonitoring ourour BeachesBeaches && BirdsBirds • Develop a protocol for sampling Puget Sound beaches for plastic debris • Work with partners to sample beaches in 10 Puget Sound counties • Conduct a Protection Island gull bolus study using citizen scientists Funded by WA Dept of Ecology Public Participation Grants PlasticPlastic PollutionPollution AwarenessAwareness forfor PugetPuget SoundSound CommunitiesCommunities andand SchoolsSchools • Providing free classes for Olympic Peninsula Schools • Hosting a plastics exhibit at PTMSC • Delivering plastics curriculum to at least 12 Puget Sound middle schools in 08-09 • Creating a traveling exhibit for community centers Students dissect an albatross bolus throughout Puget Sound • Offering a lecture series Students look at plastic debris collected from a short stretch of beach Students consider options for reducing plastics in the waste stream 11 weekweek’’ss worthworth ofof garbagegarbage atat FortFort FlaglerFlagler StateState ParkPark International Coastal Cleanup Day is September 15 Contact www.coastsavers.org FineFine PlasticPlastic FragmentsFragments inin thethe ColumbiaColumbia RiverRiver I was working on phytoplankton productivity and harmful algal blooms in the early to mid 1990s, and regularly collected plankton samples using nylon mesh nets (surface tows with 35 micron and 80 micron mesh sizes) and buckets (surf zone). The plastic fragments turned up in the plume of the Columbia River, in samples taken near Buoy 2, which is where the pilot boat waits for ships. I normally got 5 minute tows, with the net mouth underwater, so I suspect the plastic got in as the net came out of the water. In a 500 ml jar, it formed a layer about 3-5 mm thick, of clear fragments, none more than 10 mm in diameter. All the fragments had floated to the surface. They were wet but clearly on top of the 'in water' components, like plankton. At the time I was struck by how this could alter water vapor movement between ocean and air. I wondered what else it was doing in a physical sense, how big an area it covered, what happened to light transmission into the water, and dozens of other things -- but I also wondered how to sample for it specifically PlasticPlastic PollutionPollution AwarenessAwareness forfor PugetPuget SoundSound CommunitiesCommunities andand SchoolsSchools PleasePlease joinjoin usus inin makingmaking aa difference!difference!.
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