As mentioned in class, the largest trash dump isn’t on land, it’s in the ocean (Pacific ocean). It is estimated twice the size of the state Texas and it is only going to get worse as our demand for petroleum plastics only increases.
In the trash dump are bottles, plastic bags, etc. from every corner of the planet. 80% (3,5 million tons) is plastics that once got into waterways and brought, via streams of the ocean, to a central point of the ocean (the pacific).
This trash dump is the ultimate example of bad engineering, “not taking into account what to do with the product (package) when it reaches the end of it’s lifecycle and is of no use anymore”. One solution could be PLA (corn plastic, see post 24 / 07) although for the moment this plastic isn’t any better than other plastics.
Filed under: pollution | Tagged: oceans, waste management
Not sure if you meant to include some commentary to go with the graphic Nicolas. This YouTube clips expands on the issue a little: