I have just finished reading a friend's copy of Alone, Gerard d'Aboville's book about his solo row across the North Pacific.
Here is what he had to say about ocean debris....
"On this ocean, where I encountered so few signs of life, the traces of my fellow man were nonetheless very much in evidence. Pollution was visible everywhere. I am not referring to those signs of terrible and perhaps irremediable pollution, such as the oil spills from the gigantic tankers, but of a rampant ordinary pollution that revealed itself in countless little ways: plastic bags, Styrofoam packing, et cetera.
Every twenty minutes or so I would come upon some sort or another of debris, which, considering my limited horizon, suggests the magnitude of the problem: I could only imagine the mountain it would all make were it gathered together and piled up. Worse, I knew that most of this detritus was indestructible, and that each year a new batch was added to that of the previous year. What irony, when you think that these were not even the waste products of human consumption but merely the packing material in which they had come!"
|
Comments [0]
Canvas tote bags are a great alternative to plastic bags - they last forever, and they don't mess up the environment.
If you need any convincing (and a laugh), listen to this guy - Tim Minchin on YouTube...
And when you buy a tote bag from my Cafe Press store, $2 from every purchase goes to help my expedition promote the ocean conservation message: No More Plastic Pollution!
In fact, $2 from whatever goodies you buy from the store goes to the same cause.
I'm about to replace my Voyage logo with a new one - coming soon - so these Voyage t-shirts, mugs and mousemats may possibly become collector's items. Buy now while you can! (But as I don't want to promote unnecessary consumption, only buy what you need - and EVERYBODY needs a tote bag!)
|
See this recent edition of National Geographic Magazine.... sobering stuff, from a highly reputable organization.
|
It's a small start, but a powerful reminder of the effect that one individual can have, and from small starts grow great movements....
Rebecca Hosking recently arrived home from the Pacific to her home in Modbury in the West Country. She was concerned about wild life between USA and Hawaii because she had seen dolphins caught up with plastic carrier bags. She has now got the town to ban all plastic bags.
Linen bags have been distributed; "amnesty bins" are available for people to dump plastic bags. Butchers use paper to wrap items, then place them in rice fabric bags, which look almost like plastic, but are biodegradable. She is urging other councils to do the same. More supermarkets are now offering a 'lifetime bag' in exchange for 5 carrier bags. And linen bags are becoming collectors' items.
Click here for the full story.
"We never thought it would take off like this," Rebecca says. "I just wanted to do my bit. But the whole thing is just flying."
And that's all we can each do - our bit. Are you doing yours?
If you'd like some ideas what you can do to help, read the Blue Frontier Campaign's book, 50 Ways to Save the Ocean,
|
