Ocean Dump

We don't get many commenters around here (hint, hint) but I assume you either read this blog because you're interested in home projects or you stumbled here through a web search for a green topic. I'm a pretty positive, constructive guy. I like to point out ways for each of us to reduce our environmental impact around the house, individually or collectively.

All that said, the recent New York Times article on the Pacific Ocean garbage patch really affected me. The garbage, covering an area twice the size of Texas and growing, contains all types of trash created by human activity. Light bulbs, packaging, fishing debris, barrels, and pretty much any other non-biodegradable item could end up in our oceans (often via rivers) if carried by the wind or washed down the storm sewer. If you're interested in learning more about these garbage flotillas, Alan Weisman's “The World Without Us” contains an extended discussion.

The presence of garbage in areas thousands of miles from any human activity reminds me of the rationale behind the “reuse-reuse-recycle” slogans. The single serving fruit cups are convenient for my kid's lunch, but that plastic ends up somewhere. Keep checking this space and we'll try to reduce our environmental impacts together.

-Chris, Green