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The Problems with Plastic Bags (continued)

The Pacific Gyre has now received the unofficial name of the Great Pacific Garbage Patch. Some estimates have the amount of floating debris - the majority of which is plastic - as 100 million tons. At issue is that this debris kills wildlife of all kinds, with additional unknown effects on the environment.

The existence of the Pacific Garbage Patch was predicted in 1988 by the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. By 2009, it is a grim reality that is twice the size of Texas.

According to a report from Greenpeace last year titled "Plastic Debris in the World's Oceans", 80 percent of the oceans' litter originated on land. While ships drop the occasional load of shoes or hockey gloves into the waters (sometimes on purpose and illegally), the vast majority of sea garbage begins its journey as onshore trash.

You can help to limit the ever-growing patch of garbage floating in the Pacific Ocean. Here are some easy ways:

• Limit your use of plastics when possible. Plastic doesn't biodegrade, it photodegrades (breaks down into smaller and smaller bits) and can kill sea life whenit is ingested because it is mistaken for food.
  
• Use a reusable bin or bag when shopping. Single-use plastic bags may be convenient but, they can easily blow into the ocean.
• Take your trash with you when you leave the beach.
  
• Make sure your trash bins are securely closed. Keep all trash in closed, biodegradable bags.

Thousands of sea birds and turtles are killed every year by mistakenly eating plastic bags..