Junk

By Dan Estabrook - August 8, 2008 (TNN) While most of us opt to travel to Hawaii on the comfort of a 747, Dr. Marcus Eriksen, Joel Paschel, and Anna Cummins are doing so on a raft made of 15,000 plastic bottles and a fuselage of a Cessna airplane.  Why?  They want to send us all a wake-up call about the mass vortex of floating plastic in the North Pacific Ocean. It's been hailed a "plastic soup," which is probably a good name for the swath of plastic that is twice the size of Texas swirling in a huge mass northeast of Hawaii.  The three plastic sailors represent the Agalita Marine Research Foundation. Located in Long Beach, California, the Foundation is dedicated to the protection of the marine environment and its watersheds through research, education, and restoration.  Junk is one of these research and education endeavors that is generating quite a bit of press. The group is making an impression about the danger plastics are posing to our marine life.  If you take a look at the contents of an albatross' stomach found in the Pacific, you have to agree. Anna writes on Junk's blog:

For over 10 years, the Algalita Marine Research Foundation has studied plastic marine debris in the North Pacific Ocean. What we have found – exponential increases in the quantity of plastic debris – have a range of ecological impacts we are only beginning to understand. To put a cap on it, we’re sounding the alarm, by sailing across the Pacific on 15,000 plastic bottles. Along the way, we’ll report our findings, collect ocean surface samples, and answer your questions through our blog. Out of sight, out of mind no longer, We need for people to begin paying attention, before our oceans turn to plastic soup.

You can check out the group's travels, journal, photos, and communicate with them at their official blog.  I am trying to secure an interview with them next week and will report back on their progress when I have a chance to talk with them. Stay tuned... Via TreeHugger and Junk blog