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talkpoliticsI'm sure most of you have heard of the Pacific Garbage Patch or Vortex as it is sometimes called. A vast amount of floating garbage that covers areas larger than Texas. A hazard to marine life and navigation, these patches have sprung up in every ocean but are especially notable in the Pacific.
As HowStuffWorks says:
"The Eastern Garbage Patch floats between Hawaii and California; scientists estimate its size as two times bigger than Texas [source: LA Times]. The Western Garbage Patch forms east of Japan and west of Hawaii. Each swirling mass of refuse is massive and collects trash from all over the world. The patches are connected by a thin 6,000-mile long current called the Subtropical Convergence Zone. Research flights showed that significant amounts of trash also accumulate in the Convergence Zone."
Given that Americans alone throw away enough disposable water bottles annually to ring around the planet, I don't see this lamentable trend reversing anytime soon. I was reminded of this today as California phased out plastic bags in grocery stores with the new year. It's a step in the right direction but as to the bigger problem, I have an idea.
Why not make this plastic garbage into something useful? And what is it that people need? Land. It's the one thing they're not making any more of. I can see it now - floating blocks as a base and building material, seaweed and waste composting into soil. Fishing platforms. The upsides are huge - plenty of oceanfront property, tropical climate, the curent lets you travel without going anywhere. We could call them Plastic Eden. There would be two of them so Plastic Eden West and Plastic Eden East (the single side).
Now sadly I lack the billions of dollars or any of the engineering expertise to make this viable but doesn't it sound like a great plan? Turns out that people are already floating ideas but frankly my name is better.
Is this a situation best left to the private sector or should governments get involved?
As HowStuffWorks says:
"The Eastern Garbage Patch floats between Hawaii and California; scientists estimate its size as two times bigger than Texas [source: LA Times]. The Western Garbage Patch forms east of Japan and west of Hawaii. Each swirling mass of refuse is massive and collects trash from all over the world. The patches are connected by a thin 6,000-mile long current called the Subtropical Convergence Zone. Research flights showed that significant amounts of trash also accumulate in the Convergence Zone."
Given that Americans alone throw away enough disposable water bottles annually to ring around the planet, I don't see this lamentable trend reversing anytime soon. I was reminded of this today as California phased out plastic bags in grocery stores with the new year. It's a step in the right direction but as to the bigger problem, I have an idea.
Why not make this plastic garbage into something useful? And what is it that people need? Land. It's the one thing they're not making any more of. I can see it now - floating blocks as a base and building material, seaweed and waste composting into soil. Fishing platforms. The upsides are huge - plenty of oceanfront property, tropical climate, the curent lets you travel without going anywhere. We could call them Plastic Eden. There would be two of them so Plastic Eden West and Plastic Eden East (the single side).
Now sadly I lack the billions of dollars or any of the engineering expertise to make this viable but doesn't it sound like a great plan? Turns out that people are already floating ideas but frankly my name is better.
Is this a situation best left to the private sector or should governments get involved?
(no subject)
Date: 2/1/14 02:17 (UTC)(http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2415889/Boyan-Slat-19-claims-invention-clean-worlds-oceans-just-years.html)
(no subject)
Date: 2/1/14 06:13 (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2/1/14 07:51 (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 3/1/14 20:56 (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 3/1/14 21:14 (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 3/1/14 22:54 (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2/1/14 07:52 (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2/1/14 07:56 (UTC)government-oppressedliberty-adoring libertarians who've dreamt up the utopian floating cities (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seasteading) where Freedom reigns supreme, would now like to take up the task and do some good to the environment?...Unless it's unprofitable.
(no subject)
Date: 2/1/14 21:02 (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 3/1/14 00:32 (UTC)