Did you know that there are islands of floating trash in the Pacific Ocean that are bigger than the state of Texas? There are.
Did you know that birds in Hawaii and the North Sea are routinely found with over a pound of garbage in their stomaches? There are and it kills them.
The solution to this problem is given as reuse, recycle. While I think reuse and recycling are important, I think that’s trying to put a band aid on the problem. We need to invest in figuring out what to do with our trash. When you throw a plastic bag in the trash, you should feel confident that the right thing is done with it and it doesn’t end up as litter in the ocean. (Right now you should not feel confident of that!) We need better garbage disposal, better laws and regulations around garbage and ultimately better technology that can create biodegradable waste instead of the plastics we currently use.
So do your part: reuse, recycle, vote and invest in the right technologies.