Plastic pollution in the Pacific Ocean is out of control as a new study finds the Great Pacific Garbage Patch is now three times the size of France. The Great Pacific Garbage Patch is the name given to an area of the Pacific Ocean between California and Hawaii where plastics of all kinds have been accumulating into one big watery junk pile. It contains everything from plastic buckets to discarded fishing nets. A new study shows the patch is bigger than previously thought and is also growing at an astounding rate.
The Ocean Cleanup Foundation is developing technologies designed to remove plastics from places like the Great Pacific Garbage Patch. The organization has estimated its floating debris-gathering systems could clean up half the patch within five years, though a Guardian report from 2016 questioned the feasibility of the project. The foundation expects to launch its first cleanup system in mid-2018. With this new data on the size and growth of the garbage patch, the group may be facing a bigger challenge than it originally expected.
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