What can we do about the Great Pacific Garbage Patch?

The Solution to the Great Pacific Garbage Patch: The Ocean Cleanup Project. The company says that with enough fleets of systems deployed in every ocean gyre and with the inflow from rivers reduced, it should be able to clean up 90\% of all plastic ocean waste by 2040.

How does the Great Pacific Garbage Patch affect humans?

Of the most devastating elements of this pollution is that plastics takes thousands of years to decay. As a result, fish and wildlife are becoming intoxicated. Consequently the toxins from the plastics have entered the food chain, threatening human health.

Why is the garbage patch important?

The Impact of Garbage Patches on the Environment. So far, we know that marine debris found in garbage patches can impact wildlife in a number of ways: Entanglement and ghost fishing: Marine life can be caught and injured, or potentially killed in certain types of debris. Lost fishing nets are especially dangerous.

Is Garbage still being dumped in the ocean?

Today, the United States is at the forefront of protecting coastal and ocean waters from adverse impacts due to ocean dumping. The ocean is no longer considered an appropriate disposal location for most wastes. Ocean dumping of certain harmful wastes is banned.

Is anyone cleaning up the plastic in the ocean?

The Ocean Cleanup, a nonprofit organization, aims to rid the world’s oceans of plastic. It recently debuted a device it said collected 20,000 pounds from the Great Pacific Garbage Patch.

Is the Great Pacific Garbage Patch real?

The Great Pacific Garbage Patch is a collection of marine debris in the North Pacific Ocean. The patch is actually comprised of the Western Garbage Patch, located near Japan, and the Eastern Garbage Patch, located between the U.S. states of Hawaii and California.

How many garbage Patchs are in the ocean?

There are five gyres to be exact—the North Atlantic Gyre, the South Atlantic Gyre, the North Pacific Gyre, the South Pacific Gyre, and the Indian Ocean Gyre—that have a significant impact on the ocean. The big five help drive the so-called oceanic conveyor belt that helps circulate ocean waters around the globe.