Final PaperSeabird Group

1、effects of the eastern garbage patch 25the effects of the eastern garbage patch on hawaiian seabirdsslone delong, jacob mccully, and heather toneynsci 361dr. sean terryfebruary 12, 2010introduction pollution has become increasingly relevant across the globe as its detrimental effects are discovered

2、in the air, in the ground, in the worlds water supply, and in the vast numbers of marine species, like seabirds. since the creation of plastics and the “plastic boom,” which began after world war ii and has continued into the present day, plastic pollution has steadily increased. this, coupled with

3、the fact that plastics take hundreds of years to break down (and they absorb a mass amount of chemicals), produces a problem for the environment and marine animals. a place where plastic pollution is at its worst lies just 500 nautical miles southwest off the coast of california and stretches to the

4、 waters west of japan: the north pacific gyre. the pollution in the gyre has grown to nearly twice the size of the continental united states and has caused problems for marine life and has lowered the water quality in this region (kostigen, 2008). within the gyre, a large patch of marine debris, com

5、posed mainly of plastics, has formed in between hawaii and california called the eastern garbage patch. accompanied with ocean currents, trade winds, and storms, marine debris is swept out of the garbage patch and is carried westward toward north pacific islands like hawaii. once the debris reaches

6、the hawaiian islands, it produces a large build up of plastics and other trash on hawaiis beaches and can lead to harmful effects on the environment. this marine debris that collects on land and in the water poses a health threat to marine wildlife: namely hawaiian seabirds. large, surface-feeding s

7、eabirds, like the black-footed and laysan albatross, that can cover a large range of ocean and land easily mistake floating plastics for food and are at a high risk of ingesting these plastics. this can cause serious problems with the birds themselves and can be passed on to their offspring. problem

8、s with marine debris from the eastern garbage patch can even accumulate up the food chain and cause hazards to humans, as well. thesis statementthe long-term success of the black-footed and laysan albatross is threatened the most by malnutrition and puncture injuries in the stomach rather than toxin

9、s absorbed from plastics during ingestion of marine debris. literature reviewtrashed by captain charles moore was published in 2003 regarding his research conducted in the north pacific gyre concerning marine debris. moore puts a light on the ever-increasing size of the gyre and the endless impacts

10、marine debris can have on people, animals, and the environment. moores research of the gyre is built on previous research of the gyre and it helps describe how the north pacific gyre works and what causes it accumulate so much trash and plastic. this article is well-written and researched and descri

11、bes the different kinds of trash found in the gyre and explains why the marine debris found there is mainly plastic.better planet garbage patch by thomas kostigen was published a little over a year ago in 2008. kostigen wrote this article after a first-hand experience with captain moore on a trawlin

12、g excursion through the plastic-infested waters of the eastern garbage patch. kostigen gives credibility to moores research and builds on it by giving fresh research and data that moore has produced since 2003. this article is well-written and contains first-hand information regarding the north paci

13、fic gyre and the eastern garbage patch. marine birds and plastic pollution by marie y azzarello and edward s. van fleet was published in 1987 in order to convey a clear perspective on what types of marine debris accumulate, where it accumulates, and the harmful effects of marine debris when ingested

14、 by seabirds. this study goes in to detail on the types of chemicals found on plastics and what internal damage these chemicals cause to seabirds and their offspring. furthermore, this article heavily focuses on the damages done to seabirds after ingesting plastics in the realm of malnutrition and p

15、hysical trauma, like punctures to the stomach lining. azzarello and van fleet back up their arguments with detailed autopsies of adult and young seabirds alike. they discuss the types of plastics found inside the bodies of these birds and the injuries caused from the plastics that contributed to the

16、 death of these marine animals. the big island attracts plastic trash is a newscast by howard dashefsky conducted in november of 2007. this newscast discusses the large quantities of marine debris build-up on the windward side of the big island, specifically kamilo beach. this newscast interviews ca

17、ptain moore and discusses the lingering problem of marine debris in hawaii and the effects it is having on the environment of the island itself.seabirds as indicators of plastic pollution in the north pacific by hannah nevins was published in 2005 for the plastic debris rivers to the sea conference

18、in that same year. nevins, with the help of other researchers, is able to accurately discuss the problems associated with marine debris in seabirds of the north pacific ocean. nevins thoroughly reviews studies on different seabirds, including the laysan albatross, and the detrimental effects spurred

19、 in seabirds which ingest or become entangled in plastic. body of researchsynthetic polymers, commonly referred to as plastics, have been entering the marine environment now for more than fifty years. this began after world war ii when plastic products were beginning to be made in high quantities (k

20、ostigen, 2008). however, within the past three decades, the deposition rate of plastic has surpassed the rate of production; and plastics are now one of the most common pollutants in ocean waters and beaches around the world (moore, 2008). between 1960 and 2000, the world production of plastic resin

21、s increased by 25 times, while the recovery of these plastics remained below five percent (moore, 2008). these plastics, combined with many kinds of marine debris to form marine debris in the worlds oceans and seas.the problem of marine debris in the northern pacific ocean starts with understanding

22、the north pacific gyre (see figure 1). it is one of five major subtropical gyres in the world and is created by large flows of air moving from warm areas, like the tropics, to colder regions at the ice caps (moore, 2003). it is an area of high pressure that is located in the central pacific ocean ab

23、ove hawaii, between japan and the mainland united states (moore, 2003). the air within the north pacific gyre is heated and rises high into the atmosphere. “the rotation of the earth on its axis moves the heated air westward as it rises, then eastward once it cools and descends at around 30 degrees

24、north latitude, creating a huge, clockwise-rotating mass of air” (moore, 2003). in turn, this creates a surface current on the ocean that spins clockwise, as well. this causes the winds in the center of the gyre to be calm, which allows a large amount of marine debris to accumulate (moore, 2003). fi

25、gure 1 - “rise above plastics” by unnati ghandi sea-of-synthetic-trash.html the journey of a simple plastic cup that gets blown into the ocean off of the coast of california will enhance the understanding of how marine debris makes its way into the north pacific gyre. the united nations environment

26、programme (unep) reports that 80 percent of all marine debris that washes ashore originally comes from “harmless”, shore-based activities such as picnics and beach outings (kostigen, 2008). other sources of marine debris include storm water discharges, sewer overflows, solid waste disposals and land

27、fills, offshore mineral and oil exploration and dumping from cruise ships and other commercial vessels (leous, 2005). once this cup reaches the ocean, it will get caught in the california current and make its way down the coast towards central america (kostigen, 2008). somewhere off of the coast of

28、mexico, the cup will meet up with the north equatorial current, which flows towards asia (kostigen, 2008). off the coast of japan, the kuroshio current comes in and takes the cup back eastward until the north pacific current comes into the picture and pulls the cup east of hawaii into the eastern ga

29、rbage patch (kostigen, 2008). the eastern garbage patch is one of two garbage patches with a heavy concentration of marine debris within the gyre and it is not to be confused with the western garbage patch. the western garbage patch lies off the coast of japan and the eastern garbage patch is betwee

30、n hawaii and the coast of california (kostigen, 2008). the eastern garbage patch draws quite a bit of attention because of its sheer size and the fact that it draws large amounts of marine debris from one of the biggest marine debris producers on the planet, the united states (kostigen, 2008). accor

31、ding to oceanographer, curtis ebbesmeyer, the eastern garbage patch is estimated to be about the size of texas (moore, 2003). subsequently, the north pacific gyre itself is about twice the size of the continental united states. many of the studies regarding marine debris and the effects that it has

32、on the environment have been conducted by captain charles moore of long beach, california. moores interest in this area has stemmed from his childhood and continued through his life as he has always been around the water and has witnessed the harmful effects of marine debris (moore, 2003). in 1994,

33、he established the algalita marine research foundation, dedicated to research, education, and restoration of the marine environment (moore, 2003). moore discovered the eastern garbage patch in 1997 during the transpacific yacht race (kostigen, 2008). he took a shortcut through the gyre and was confr

34、onted with plastic and as moore puts it, “as far as the eye could see,” (moore, 2003). since 1997, moore has become increasingly passionate about investigating this garbage patch and creating awareness to the science community and the rest of the world. moore, now in his early sixties is still activ

35、e in his research regarding marine debris.moore was surprised to find that the research he was conducting was relatively new. in fact, the earliest studies start in the early 1990s with w. james ingraham jr., an oceanographer at the national oceanic and atmospheric administration (noaa) (moore, 2003

36、). the reason that the north pacific gyre went so long without being noticed is the fact that it did not appear on satellite images (marks, 2008). the marine debris floats just below the water to a depth of roughly 10 meters, which makes the garbage patches visible only at the surface (marks, 2008).

37、 ingrahams studies suggest that marine debris reaching the north pacific gyre might revolve around in it for up to sixteen years or more (moore, 2003). moore describes that most plastics do not biodegrade like other garbage, but instead, the bacteria-immune plastic “photodegrades” (moore, 2003). thi

38、s is a process where sunlight breaks the plastic into increasingly smaller pieces. the cold ocean water and the fact that plastic is comprised of chemically bonded carbon, hydrogen and oxygen molecules make the process of photodegrading extremely slow (leous, 2005). the degradation process can take

39、hundreds of years. therefore, plastics account for anywhere from 60 to 80 percent of marine debris (gregory, 1997). and for over a half century, plastics have been collecting and fragmenting in the gyre to create an enormous “plastic soup.” from 1999 to 2005, the amount of plastic in the eastern gar

40、bage patch has risen from .002 grams of plastic per square meter to .004 grams of plastic per square meter of water (kostigen, 2008).environmental problems, on the land and in the water, have spurred because of this large collection of marine debris within the north pacific gyre that include items s

41、uch as six-pack rings, beverage bottles and cans, plastic bags and bottle caps. beaches on the hawaiian islands have succumbed to large amounts of plastic and marine debris. kamilo beach, on the windward side of the big island of hawaii, was once a place where native hawaiians came to find logs for

42、their voyaging canoes (dashefsky, 2007). now, it has become a collection site for the plastic of the pacific and has coined the name “plastic beach” (dashefsky, 2007). the reason for this large collection of marine debris on the windward side of the island is due to the trade winds, combining with a

43、 strong north equatorial current, bringing the marine debris from the eastern garbage patch (miller, 2002). marine debris can also reach land when storms flush marine debris and plastic from gyres, like the north pacific gyre (algalita, n.d.). according to captain moore, “this plastic goes down a fo

44、ot deep. at one time these were toothbrushes, pens, cigarette lighters, plastic bottles, plastic caps, but not theyre plastic fragments and pre-production plastic pellets, together forming a new kind of sand: plastic sand here on the beaches of hawaii” (dashefsky, 2007). a november 2009 interview wi

45、th captain moore revealed that lava flowing from mauna loa, the worlds largest volcano, is mixing with this plastic sand to form sheets of a new type of rock on the south shore of the island (moore, 2009). not only does such a mass collection of pollution on a beach lead to harmful effects on the en

46、vironment, it can lead to things such a decline in tourism.in 2002, researchers at nasa used a satellite that uses microwave radar to measure winds near the ocean surface. astonishingly, they found that hawaiis wake from the trade winds and the north equatorial current stretches almost 8000 kilomete

47、rs across the ocean (miller, 2002). this large wake results in a warm counter current called the “hawaiian lee counter current” that rushes back towards hawaii (miller, 2002). this counter current forms because of the warm water left behind from hawaiis wake mixing with the cold waters of the pacifi

48、c to form a surface current that flows back towards the leeward side of hawaii (miller, 2002). this counter current allows marine debris to collect on a variety of beaches that surround each of the hawaiian islands. and, in turn, exposes even more marine wildlife to the harmful effects of plastic de

49、bris.serious problems have also prompted for marine animals that ingest plastics or become entangled in them. the u.s. commission on ocean policy states that at least 267 species have been affected by marine debris all around the globe (leous, 2005). this includes 86 percent of all sea turtle specie

50、s, 44 percent of all seabird species, and 43 percent of all marine mammal species (leous, 2005). many marine birds and animals mistakenly eat pelagic, or free-floating, plastic and because of its high molecular weight and the nature of its chemical bonds, the plastic cant ever be digested (algalita,

51、 n.d.). once consumed, it causes animals to feel a sense of fullness; therefore they are not absorbing any nutrients. this essentially leads to problems like starvation and even death (algalita, n.d.). in birds, the ingestion of plastics can prevent migration and reproduction (algalita, n.d.). in tu

52、rtles, plastic has been shown to block intestines and make them float, which prevents them from diving for food (algalita, n.d.).toxic, hydrophobic chemicals, such as ddt and pcbs cannot dissolve in water, but plastics absorb these chemicals like sponges (hoshaw, 2009). this can create a chain of ha

53、zardous events that can harm every link of the food chain. plankton feed on tiny particles of plastic, and when fish consume the plankton, they absorb the chemicals found in those same particles of plastics (hoshaw, 2009). this continues on up the food chain when larger fish, birds, and humans consu

54、me fish from the ocean. one of the most highly susceptible animals to consume and experience the harmful effects of plastic are the seabirds of the northern pacific, specifically hawaii. there are an estimated 15 million seabirds of 22 different species that fly over or breed in the hawaiian islands

55、 (scott, 2004). seabirds are predators with a wide-ranging food base across ocean basins and hemispheres with long life spans. this, coupled with the fact that they feed opportunistically at the surface, make them valuable indicators of plastic pollution in coastal and oceanic waters (nevins, 2005).

56、 over 80 species of seabirds have been found to ingest plastic (algalita, n.d.). sea bird chicks are especially vulnerable due to the fact that they receive high levels of pollution from the yolk sac and from the food brought to them by their parents (algalita, n.d.). this plastic pollution can lead

57、 to defects, stunted growth and even death (nevins, 2005). ninety percent of laysan albatross carcasses and food that they had regurgitated contained plastic (algalita, n.d.). plastics can cut the stomachs and digestive tracts of adult and chicks alike, and plastics can even obstruct the entire dige

58、stive system (nevins, 2005). plastic found in a sample of young albatross concluded that the large amount of ingested plastic contributed to intestinal obstruction, while another bird died of ulcerations in the stomach (azzarello, 1987). moreover, the presence of plastic in the stomachs of these bir

59、ds can impede the secretion of gastric enzymes and the movement of food into the small intestine (azzarello, 1987). seabirds can also become entangled in plastic nets and fishing lines, and according to a unep report, plastic debris causes the deaths of more than one million seabirds every year (see figure 2) (marks, 2008).it is probable for plastics to mimic almost any kind of natural food source d