Plastic Impact On Ocean Life

The world has a titanic problem with disposing of plastic bags. Literally. Floating in the midst of the Pacific Ocean is a double-vortex of garbage that stretches from the west coast of the United States to the Islands of Japan. The Great Pacific Garbage Patch is composed six thousand three hundred and twenty-one miles of trash. The majority of this artificial waste continent is discarded fishing nets, plastic water bottles and caps, and plastic bags. Obviously, garbage in the vast expanse of the Pacific Ocean may not seem like a serious problem for many people because they assume that it is spread out over such a large area that the earth sort of just absorbs it. Nothing could be further from the truth. Let’s look at the ways that this plastic waste, much of it from plastic bags, are threatening the life of our oceans.

Photodegradation
Plastic doesn’t biodegrade naturally like compostable bags or bags made from natural materials, but instead breaks up into
Loggerhead sea turtles often mistake them for jellyfish, their favorite food. Consuming plastic bags causes them to either choke and suffocate, or it destroys their internal organs. Seabirds such as Albatrosses often mistake tiny pellets and fragments of plastic for fish eggs, feeding them to their chicks. When the chicks eat the plastic, they cannot digest it, causing them to die either of starvation or ruptured organs.

All in all, plastic bags in the oceans are going to destroy life in the ocean as we know it if we do not reduce the consumption and disposal of plastic grocery bags. Make the ocean-friendly choice and purchase reusable grocery bags, such as ones made of canvas, jute, or paper. Check with the friendly folks at EcoBags about what bags are best for you, and safer for our oceans. Let’s work together to make The Great Pacific Garbage Patch part of our past instead of our