The following shocking details on the Great Pacific Garbage Patch:
- It is said to be the size of Queensland state.
- It contains six times more plastic than plankton, which is a major source of nutrition for a lot of marine life.
- Eighty percent of plastic comes from land, either blown into the ocean or floating in rivers, while twenty percent comes from ships and oil rigs.
- It is referred to by scientists as the world’s largest landfill.
- Small plastic fragments have been found in 5–10% of the fish at the Scrips Institution of Oceanography in California, according to scientific studies.
TEEN BOY CREATES THE OCEAN CLEANUP
In 2010, Boyan Slat, a 16-year-old Dutchman, was astonished to learn about the amount of plastic pollution in the water while on a diving trip in Greece.
He committed himself to tidying it up.
Along with a friend, Slat came up with the idea for a long barrier to be placed in the water to catch large pieces of passing plastic for a school science competition. They emerged victorious in that contest.
After two years, he pursued a degree in aeronautical engineering* at the university and kept researching plastic cleanups. Slat presented his ideas at a TEDx ideas conference shortly after enrolling in the school, and the video quickly gained international attention. He was aware that he had a good idea.
