Most people who care about the planet's health know about the North Pacific Gyre that is collecting
a vast amount of plastic debris and other
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| discarded tire at 868m, credit: MBARI |
man-made detritus, but video footage brought back by deep sea remotely controlled vehicles over the last twenty-two years shows garbage everywhere on the Pacific seafloor. Particularly hard hit is Monterey Canyon, off the California coast according to a study done by the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute (MBARI). Submersibles reached as deep as 4,000 meters. Researchers counted 1500 observations of deep water trash from Vancouver Island to the Gulf of California and as far west as Hawaii. Most of the trash consists of plastic debris, more than half of which were plastic bags. Metal objects were the second most common type of trash. Often, when this junk is floating at or near the surface, is ingested by marine life and is potentially fatal. Once it sinks, either immediately or eventually, it collects on the ocean's steep, rocky slopes such as the edges of the Monterey Canyon. Debris is also more common in the Canyon's deeper parts, below 2,000 meters, but the scientists were surprised most of all by the amount.
Researchers found in 2011 a
shipping container on the bottom filled with 1,159 steel belted radials that rolled off the container ship
Med Taipei, during heavy seas in the winter of 2004. Two dozen containers were lost overboard due to improper stacking. There is no legal requirement for shipping companies to report such losses at sea. The upside-down container resting on the bottom at 1300m was identified by Aquarium scientists on a marine biology study using a robot submersible. US customs identified the container's serial number. After considerable legal effort the shipping company agreed to pay NOAA $3.25 million to settle claims related to the lost containers. The number of containers lost at sea will increase as container ships get larger, and lax monitoring of ship loading continues. About 10% of containers carry industrial and household chemicals that are toxic to marine life.
While old fishing gear is not the most prevalent form of junk, it is probably the
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| plastic shrouds deep coral, credit: MBARI |
most dangerous to marine life. Researchers saw several cases of animals trapped in discarded gear. There is currently no way for regulators to trace dumped commerical gear to individuals boats or fishermen, so it is disposed of indiscriminately. Sometimes the environmental effect of trash is more benign; on muddy bottoms where cover is at a premium, organisms huddle in discarding items like a shoe. The impacts of discarded gear and other forms of trash can last for years at depth due to near freezing water temperatures, lack of sunlight and low oxygen concentrations. There are few natural organisms present that can break down even small debris. A plastic bag or soda therefore persist for decades. No effort on a large scale is being made to clean up human debris from the oceans because it is prohibitively expensive. Experts think that public awareness and recycling remains the most expedient solution to a growing problem. But a bill to ban plastic bags in California supermarkets
failed to pass by three votesdespite Hollywood celebrity support. One can safely admit results of this indirect approach are not very impressive as the junk continues to pile up on land and sea.
