Essay on Plastic Soup

Submitted By madiblea
Words: 1311
Pages: 6
Open Document
The world we know as earth is the planet holding the most advanced species to date. Made of just land and water, we live all together about seven billion strong. We create new inventions, like plastic, shipping it across the world to change the lives of many. What some people don’t understand is, when they throw away all these amazing plastic products, we run into a problem. Seeing as plastic cannot be destroyed without burning it, creating harsh chemicals, we let it pollute the very earth we live on. It only has two places to go, our land or our water. Today billions of pounds of plastic can be found in our oceans. A toxic waste bowl is rapidly forming in the pacific, caused by the consumption of humans, know as the “Plastic Soup”. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) foresaw the start of the soup like mess in our ocean, otherwise known as the Plastic Garbage Patch, many years ago. Actually, scientists and environmental campaigners have been aware of the mounting volumes of plastic since the 1970’s. (Kostigen p.3) Even with the widespread knowledge though out the science world, the public has only recently become aware of the growing issue. We may be hearing about this phenomenon in more recent years, but I fear we may be too late to help. The massive amount of plastic waste swirling in the North Pacific has grown 100-fold over the last 40 years. (McLendon p.1) P.2 Data collected from institutions like NOAA, who studied the Pacific albatross populations, suggest there may be two distinct zones of debris swirling in the Pacific.
They are located northeast of the beautiful island of Hawaii, and about 1000 miles out of California. (McLendon p.1) With such beautiful beaches at such close range, some would start to question realness and severity of the Plastic Soup. The Garbage Patch location, also known as the Gyre, has an intense rotational pattern pulling in waste material from across the North Pacific Ocean. These areas include the costal waters off of North America and Japan. (Silverman p.3) The swirling patterns gradually pull in the results of marine pollution. It is mostly all land-based sources such as drinking bottles and plastic buckets. They drag into the ocean from the great rivers around the whole world. It seems as though there is no stopping this cycle of trash being sucked into our ocean. In fact, the cleanup process becomes more and more difficult the longer we wait. The patch becomes less and less visible as time continues on. It consists of very small pieces, almost invisible to the naked eye. Most of the contents are suspended beneath the surface of the ocean, with little density. Scientific studies show the 5.1 kilograms of plastic per square kilometer. The exact size of the patch is currently unknown because of the visibility issues. (Kostigen p.1) No one can accurately know for certain how to measure the boundaries of the trash because they are always shifting with ocean conditions. Even with this issue of accuracy, many attempts have been made to find the size of this swirling mess. Scientists estimate the size range from 700,000 -15,000,000 square kilometers. (McLendon p.2) To the people who
P.3
don’t have an accurate image of how big that really is, picture it almost the size of the continental United Stated. If you tried to drive around the United States perimeter, it would take months. Imagine the struggles of trying to drive a boat around this massive disaster of trash and waste. Some plastic and debris comes from fishing gear, offshore oil, and ships. Some think an easy fix is to force harsh laws onto fisherman and cruise ships to clean up after themselves. That is a way people block the real problem out of their minds. It is true that 80 percent of it comes from the land. (Silverman p.3) Garbage gets stuck in storm drains and is washed away into rivers and out to sea. The legal and illegal dumping of trash and appliances, and plastic pellets inadvertently
Show More

Related Documents: Essay on Plastic Soup

Key Facts About Plastic Ocean Pollution

several key facts about plastic ocean pollution in deep degree based on the research group and the the possible consequences as a result of 'making plastic suop'. Author Carolyn states that even though ocean-borne plastic has a reputation for recycling as an indestructible , some plastics actually decompose rapidly in the ocean(Carolyn,2009) which simply means that ocean-born plastic pollution could not be cleaned and recycled completely. In addition, ocean as a 'plastic soup' has lots of negative…

Words 500 - Pages 2

Essay about Bisphenol A BPA In U

chemical used for lining metal cans and in polycarbonate plastics, such as baby bottles. In rodents, BPA is associated with early sexual maturation, altered behavior, and effects on prostate and mammary glands. In humans, BPA is associated with cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and male sexual dysfunction in exposed workers. Food is a major exposure source. We know of no studies reporting BPA in U.S. fresh food, canned food, and food in plastic packaging in peer reviewed journals. We measured BPA levels…

Words 5983 - Pages 24

Grandma's Creamy Lemon Pie: Pinch Of Yum

fingers until the ingredients come together to form a fairly smooth dough. If your dough is too soft, add extra flour until you reach the desired consistency. Your dough should be soft, slightly tacky, but not sticky. 3. Transfer dough onto a piece of plastic wrap. Press down to form into a thick disc, wrap and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes. For the filling 4. Preheat oven to 375F. 5. On floured surface, roll out dough to form a 12-13 inch disc. Fit into 9 inch spring form pan, letting excess…

Words 830 - Pages 4

Food Situation Analysis

because of moisture; third is because of light, and the last two are microbial growth and temperature. These factors can greatly affect the food and when people eat a spoiled food, they can get illnesses and will be brought to the hospital. Foods, like soups, must also be consumed at their recommended temperature. One way to protect and keep foods hot or cold is using containers. Containers can be placed in the hot or cold environment. According to Josh Patrick, 2013, improper food storage is one of the…

Words 1756 - Pages 8

The Little Mermaid Water Pollution Essay

of the Great Pacific Garbage Patch?” “Most of the plastic debris in the Garbage Patch is from land-based sources and survives the long trip there because conventional plastic does not biodegrade and current bioplastics do not biodegrade in the marine environment … Some people may envision a plastic island in the middle of the ocean, but this 'Garbage Patch' could better be described as a weak plastic soup dispersed over a large area where plastics in various stages of degradation are suspended in…

Words 848 - Pages 4

Personal Narrative-Assisted Suicide: A Short Story

I was trying to fall asleep on the hard canvas mat of a Navy grade bunk bed. I rolled over trying to get in a comfortable position under the itchy cotton black and white plaid blanket. I began to close my eyes. Suddenly, all the lights turned on and the alarms started blaring, a frantic voice on the intercom said, "This is not a drill, I repeat this is not a drill, the boat is under attack, the boat is under attack, please get to your battle stations, please get to your battle stations, this is…

Words 1020 - Pages 5

Effects Of Ocean Pollution

pollution. Ocean pollution has gotten to the point where there are islands of pure waste floating through the ocean, and fertilizers that mix into the ocean have created hundreds of dead zones. According to Discovery News, the ocean will have more plastic than fish in only thirty years. When you drive a car, you’re not just putting carbon into the atmosphere. The carbon in the air will always eventually reach the ocean, and mix into the water. This causes a chemical reaction that ends up rising acidic…

Words 1185 - Pages 5

Bisphenol a and Bpa Essay

Bisphenol A Bisphenol A (BPA) is the primary component in polycarbonate plastic and is used in the resin lining of most food and beverage cans. Exposure to BPA, a hormone-mimicking compound, is linked in animal studies to early puberty and other reproductive harms. Health Concerns In animal studies, BPA has been shown to mimic the female hormone estrogen. Exposure among test animals to this chemical early in life is associated with: •Pre-cancerous changes in the mammary and prostate glands;…

Words 2020 - Pages 9

Korean Cuisine Essay

Each person will have their own bowl of soup or stew. The side dishes and main dish or dishes, which can be meat, seafood, or tofu are all be served family-style in the middle of the table. So they will intake different nutrients every day. (Imatome-Yun, Korean Food 101) The 21st day after a baby's birth is called samchil day. On this day, family and friends visit to celebrate the birth of a newborn and comfort the mother after giving labor. Seaweed soup with beef broth is served to the mother…

Words 1003 - Pages 5

Hungry Research Paper

Whether observing downtown Atlanta or the suburbs of Greater Greenville, look hard enough around the dumpsters and soup kitchens and see the tremendously staggering amount of hungry within the state of South Carolina. Hungry does not mean someone that skipped breakfast because they were late for work, no, someone who has gone days or more without food. That is true hunger. The amount of food wasted that could be kept aside to feed these hungry people is just as astounding. A single restaurant disposes…

Words 852 - Pages 4