The trash vortex
Posted by Clay on August 27th, 2007Have you ever wondered what happens to all those plastic trash bags, old Tupperware, and beverage bottles when they are disposed of?
Not all of it ends up in the landfill; about 10% of the 100 million tonnes of plastic produced each year end up in the sea.
In the North Pacific gyre (one of five major ocean gyres), the floating plastic - along with other slow degrading garbage - turned into a “trash vortex“: the equivalent of an area the size of Texas (in quantities estimated at six kilos of plastic for every kilo of naturally occurring plankton) is swirling slowly around like a clock, choked with dead fish, marine mammals, and birds who get snared.
Clay MADISEN is a full time real estate broker and REALTOR® with 18 years of experience in the San Diego market.
