No Plastic, People

Today, California became the first state in the nation to ban single-use plastic bags. Watch for other coastline states to follow, starting in the West. Why? California alone spends $25 million a year to collect and landfill the 14 billion plastic bags we use. A paltry 5% is recycled; it’s not energy-efficient and it encourages more plastic use. Plastic bags make up 2% of the overall waste in California, but they are the predominate form of marine debris. The ultimate destination for much of the plastic waste here is… (wait for it…) the North Pacific Central Gyre, where researchers say more than 300,000 plastic particles are found per square mile.

Garbage Patch Twins?

Sail the Gulf Stream from Bermuda to the Azores and what do you think you'll find? Miles and iles of plastic pieces suspended near the water's surface stuck in wads of seaweed and ocean debris. You've stumbled onto The Great Pacific Garbage Patch's eastern twin: The North Atlantic Subtropical Convergence Zone. Otherwise known as the Great ATLANTIC Garbage Patch.

Though the dimensions have not yet been determined, the area is known to be vast, centered in the Sargasso Sea, which is bounded by ocean currents. The highest concentrations of plastics are found between 22 and 38 degrees north latitude. Due to the stormier nature of the Eastern Seaboard and Atlantic, the garbage there is thought to be more diverse. Charles Moore, the ocean researcher credited with discovering the Pacific Patch, agrees that with the higher population on the East Coast and more rivers flowing south, comparable amounts of plastic can be expected. "Humanity's plastic footprint is probably more dangerous than our carbon footprint," he said.