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| Blue button Porpita species, viewed from above.Credit...Denis Rieck |
NY Times article ("The Ocean’s Biggest Garbage Pile Is Full of Floating Life") reveals that there is unexpected ocean animal life that is found in the Great Pacific Garbage Patch, which contains 79,000 tons of floating garbage.
The Great Pacific Garbage Patch has been seen as an enormous symbol of humankind's careless attitude towards its own refuse. The threat from ocean plastic to birds and sea creatures, and (via microplastics) to all forms of life is well documented. It's been a goal for some groups to remove the trash heap.
“I had this hypothesis that gyres concentrate life and plastic in similar ways, but it was still really surprising to see just how much we found out there,” said Rebecca Helm, an assistant professor at the University of North Carolina and co-author of the study. “The density was really staggering. To see them in that concentration was like, wow.”
Now, animal conservationists are concerned that removing the sea trash will endanger these animals.
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