JUNKride 2009 Exposes Plastic Pollution
Sailing 2,600 miles from Los Angeles to Hawaii on a raft made of 15,000 bottles may not sound like a good time to you, but to the Algalita Marine Research Foundation, it’s just one part of the process to reveal the effects of plastics pollution in the ocean. The “JUNKraft” was one part of their “Message in a Bottle” (MIB) initiative, and now MIB is taking their trip back to the shore with JUNKride 2009.
During JUNKride, Marcus Eriksen and Anna Cummins of Algalita will ride 2,000 miles from Vancouver, Canada to Tijuana, Mexico. Throughout the journey, the team will distribute 100 samples of plastic debris from the North Pacific Subtropical Gyre (the first portion of MIB) to illustrate the damaging impact plastics are having on marine life to educators, organizations and legislators. Eriksen and Cummins are hoping to convince legislators along their route to consider various plastic-related legislation, such as plastic bag bans.
Plastic debris in the Earth's waterways is often mistaken for food sources by sea life. Photo: tropicalblendsurf via Photobucket.com
In an interview with Wend Magazine, Eriksen notes that “Plastics are a medium for other pollutants to get into food webs.” Certain types of toxins bind with plastic particles, which make their way into the tissue of marine life.
During their trip to the NPSG, Algalita researchers found plastic particles in more than one-third of the lantern fish collected.
“We know that the situation is getting significantly worse,” says Cummins. “On our last voyage we found that the density of plastic particles had double in just 10 years. That, coupled with the fact that we found plastic particles in the fish we brought back, is enough to tell us we have to make some drastic changes.”
Plastic waste in oceans and wasted resources continue to be mounting concerns as scientists around the world research solutions to pollution impact. Cummins added in her interview that “The fact that we’re using a resource as valuable as petroleum to make a product that’s made to last forever to make things that can be thrown away is absurd…beyond citizens, it’s going to take cooperation from the industry (to get alternatives to single use plastic containers).”
This week, the riders will be in Portland, Salem and Corvallis, Oregon. A full schedule of their trip is available on the JUNKride site. The riders are also regularly updating a blog of their travels.
The trip began April 4 and will run through June 25. If you’re interested in joining, especially with Earth Day 2009 just around the corner, you can contact Anna Cummins at annacummins@gmail.com.
- Algalita Marine Research Foundation "Raising Awareness: Two bikes, 2000 miles " http://www.algalita.org/junk_ride_2009.html.
- (04/16/2009). "Give Me Convenience or Give Me Death: JUNKRide Exposes Effects of Plastic Pollution on Our Health" Wend Magazine http://wendmag.com/greenery/2009/04/give-me-convenience-or-give-me-death-junkride-exposes-effects-of-plastic-pollution-on-our-health/.
Deron Triff
posted on April 20th, 2009 at 9:11 am
Anna and Marcus are amazing. They posted a great video about JunkRide that’s worth checking out http://tiny.cc/LAL0a .
As a related note on the other side of the US, this week extreme swimmer and eco-activist Christopher Swain will embark on the first leg of a 1,000 mile swim journey from Marblehead, Massachusetts to Washington, DC to raise awareness about pollution and the impact on our ocean planet: http://www.changents.com/christopherswain.
People like Anna, Marcus and Christopher are the real heroes, but we can all participate either by helping them or doing our own thing, especially this week in honor of Earth Day.
Karis Isaiah Foothill
posted on April 22nd, 2009 at 4:15 pm
Jennifer,
Throw those plastic bottles in recycle bins instead of throwing it in the water because that will mess up our water supply.
Earth Science Foothill High
posted on April 22nd, 2009 at 4:38 pm
Jennifer,
My students were supportive about the cause to clean up the waters. We studied the gyres recently and they want to know how this plastic junk raft will get out of the center of the doldrums. Also they suggest that a giant trash boat should sail out there and just scoop up all that junk like a floating garbage truck.
Also they wish Anna and Marcus a fun trip and hope that the boat doesn’t break apart. Happy Earth Day.
RecycleBill
posted on May 17th, 2009 at 4:55 am
Recently I was invited to participate in the American Chemistry Council’s 2009 Blog Summit on Plastics Recycling and I jumped at the chance because I’ve figured out a way to give actual value to waste plastics without taxpayers being forced to foot the bills but I quickly discovered the blog summit to be nothing more than a PR fest and another attempt at greenwashing by the plastics industry so I left the summit and posted my entire series here: http://recyclebills.squarespace.com/return-to-gilligans-island/
Cheryl Anderson
posted on June 20th, 2009 at 8:49 am
We are really into recycling as a family….. I am have been collecting apple containers made out of recycled water bottles. The kind that holds every apple separately but in one container to I am thinking to help prevent spoilage. Been collecting them awhile trying to figure out how and where to recycle them. Hate to toss them then find a place to recycle them. I appreciate and thank in advance for any suggestions.