Post by Wes on Feb 26, 2010 10:00:07 GMT 10
Scientists find giant plastic rubbish dump floating in the Atlantic.
SCIENTISTS have discovered a giant rubbish tip made up of plastic bottles, bottletops and toothbrushes floating in the Atlantic Ocean.
The discarded plastic, which lies north of the Caribbean, is known to harm seabirds and marine life.
Sea Education Association's Dr Karen Lavender Law said that the problem in the Atlantic had been "largely ignored".
Researchers told the paper that the dump has 200,000 pieces of debris per square kilometre but it was impossible to measure the exact size of the patch as much of it floats beneath the surface.
"That's a maximum that is comparable with the 'great Pacific garbage patch'," Dr Lavender Law said.
The great Pacific patch lies between Hawaii and California.
During the study, researchers collected more than 64,000 tiny bits of plastic after carrying out 6100 sweeps of the North Atlantic towing fine mesh nets behind a research vessel. It is the longest and most extensive record of plastic debris in any ocean basin.
The revelations come after the results of a 22-year study were unveiled at the Ocean Sciences Meeting in Portland, US.
The Pacific and North Atlantic patches are called gyres, which are areas of relatively little movement surrounded by strong ocean currents. The currents create spinning vortexes and once plastic floats into the area it cannot escape and accumulates over time.
There are now thought to be five major oceanic gyres and all are likely to form large plastic patches.
www.news.com.au/world/scientists-find-giant-plastic-rubbish-dump-floating-in-the-atlantic/story-e6frfkyi-1225834562266
SCIENTISTS have discovered a giant rubbish tip made up of plastic bottles, bottletops and toothbrushes floating in the Atlantic Ocean.
The discarded plastic, which lies north of the Caribbean, is known to harm seabirds and marine life.
Sea Education Association's Dr Karen Lavender Law said that the problem in the Atlantic had been "largely ignored".
Researchers told the paper that the dump has 200,000 pieces of debris per square kilometre but it was impossible to measure the exact size of the patch as much of it floats beneath the surface.
"That's a maximum that is comparable with the 'great Pacific garbage patch'," Dr Lavender Law said.
The great Pacific patch lies between Hawaii and California.
During the study, researchers collected more than 64,000 tiny bits of plastic after carrying out 6100 sweeps of the North Atlantic towing fine mesh nets behind a research vessel. It is the longest and most extensive record of plastic debris in any ocean basin.
The revelations come after the results of a 22-year study were unveiled at the Ocean Sciences Meeting in Portland, US.
The Pacific and North Atlantic patches are called gyres, which are areas of relatively little movement surrounded by strong ocean currents. The currents create spinning vortexes and once plastic floats into the area it cannot escape and accumulates over time.
There are now thought to be five major oceanic gyres and all are likely to form large plastic patches.
www.news.com.au/world/scientists-find-giant-plastic-rubbish-dump-floating-in-the-atlantic/story-e6frfkyi-1225834562266