...Marine Litter Distribution and Density in European Seas, from the Shelves to Deep Basins Christopher K. Pham1,2*, Eva Ramirez-Llodra3,4, Claudia H. S. Alt5, Teresa Amaro6, Melanie Bergmann7, ¸ Miquel Canals8, Joan B. Company3, Jaime Davies9, Gerard Duineveld10, Francois Galgani11, 9 12 1,2 Kerry L. Howell , Veerle A. I. Huvenne , Eduardo Isidro , Daniel O. B. Jones12, Galderic Lastras8, ´ ˆ Telmo Morato1,2, Jose Nuno Gomes-Pereira1,2, Autun Purser13, Heather Stewart14, Ines Tojeira15, 8 16 5 Xavier Tubau , David Van Rooij , Paul A. Tyler 1 Center of the Institute of Marine Research (IMAR) and Department of Oceanography and Fisheries, University of the Azores, Horta, Portugal, 2 Laboratory of Robotics `ncies del Mar (ICM-CSIC), Barcelona, Spain, 4 Norwegian Institute for Water Research and Systems in Engineering and Science (LARSyS), Lisbon, Portugal, 3 Institut de Cie (NIVA), Marine Biology section, Oslo, Norway, 5 Ocean and Earth Science, University of Southampton, National Oceanography Centre, Southampton, United Kingdom, ¨ 6 Norwegian Institute for Water Research, Bergen, Norway, 7 Alfred-Wegener-Institut, Helmholtz-Zentrum fur Polar- und Meeresforschung, Bremerhaven, Germany, 8 GRC `ncies Marines, Departament d9Estratigrafia, Paleontologia i Geocie `ncies Marines, Facultat de Geologia, Universitat de Barcelona, Campus de Pedralbes, Barcelona, Geocie Spain, 9 Marine Biology & Ecology Research Centre, Marine Institute, Plymouth University, Plymouth, United Kingdom, 10 Netherlands...
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...BILL ANALYSIS AB 87 Page 1 Date of Hearing: April 13, 2009 ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON NATURAL RESOURCES Nancy Skinner, Chair AB 87 (Davis) - As Amended: March 18, 2009 SUBJECT : Solid waste: single-use carryout bags. SUMMARY : This bill establishes a statewide fee of 25 cents for single-use carryout bags (bags), of all types, beginning in 2010. EXISTING LAW : 1)Requires operators of stores (defined as supermarkets and stores over 10,000 square feet that include a pharmacy) to establish an in-store plastic carryout bag recycling program. The program must include: a) Plastic bags provided by the store to include a label encouraging customers to return the bag to the store for recycling; b) Easily accessible recycling bins for plastic bags; c) All plastic bags collected must be recycled in a manner consistent with...
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...store so often the best that citizens can do is reuse them when following pooper scooper laws. * The biggest problem with this is that once they have been soiled the end up in the trash, which then ends up in the landfill or burned. Either solution is very poor for the environment. Burning emits toxic gases that harm the atmosphere and increase the level of VOCs in the air while landfills hold them indefinitely as part of the plastic waste problem throughout the globe. * Plastic Bag Litter * Even when citizens try to manage their plastic bag disposal wind plays a role in carrying them away as litter. This litter is not biodegradable and thus where it lands it tends to stay for long period of time. A bag that is eventually ripped to shreds from high winds or other factors doesn't disappear but instead is spread in smaller amounts throughout the area. This can cause more problems as these smaller pieces are carried away through storm drains and often end up in the waterways. * Plastic bag litter is often also the result of human laziness. The plastic bag might make for a good carry on to the beach for the day but once all of the pretzels and chips are consumed an estimated one in three consumers simply allow the bag to disappear into the wind and waves....
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...Man versus Nature: Technology Versus Environment: Money Versus Wild Life Bristol Bay Although the fishing industry has long been associated with the contribution of marine pollution little work has been done on the effects on the industry itself of marine debris and other pollution. The fishing industry is responsible for discarded nets, hooks, fishing poles, and many times sunken boats, among other gear. In many circumstances this is not the intended plan when going fishing to catch their paychecks. In fact the fishing industry pays a high price for these losses from the time they have to replace their nets to the pulling of old nets and trash out of their new nets on a regular basis. When questioned about the effects of marine debris on their fishing activities, Shetland fishermen responded that 92% had recurring problems with accumulated debris in nets, 69% had had their catch contaminated by debris and 92% had snagged their nets on debris on the seabed. Many also experienced fouled propellers and blocked intake pipes. On average, 1-2 hours per week were spent clearing debris from nets. Debris could cause a restricted catch and many boats avoided particular fishing areas altogether due to the high concentrations of debris. It has gotten to the point for many fishers that they can no longer fish certain areas known to be well stocked with money fish due to the time consuming issues with trash and fishing debris in those specific waters due to left behind gear. Ultimately...
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...Introduction This research essay aims to provide an insight and overview of the economic effects of a plastic bag tax. It is important that this issue is addressed because if it is left unaddressed, the consequences could be dire. The essay will discuss the impact that plastic bags are having on society and why the over consumption of such needs to be corrected. Furthermore, it will explain the economic models that are relevant to the issue along with analysing real world examples of similar policies; discussing the limitations and restrictions associated with such models. Setting the Context Australia’s consumption of plastic grocery bags was estimated to be approximately seven billion per year in 2002 (National Plastic Shopping Bags Working Group, 2002), so we can assume it is in excess of this figure currently. This consumption results in negative externalities, not only impacting the environment, but also reducing the efficiency of other sectors of the economy. As these plastic bags are composed of many non-renewable resources such as crude oil, coal and gases, there is an opportunity cost associated with not recycling them. The fuel consumed by driving a car one kilometre is equivalent to the petroleum content of 8.7 bags (Environment Australia, 2002). As these bags are used once, and disregarded, that means that Australia is wasting enough potential fuel to power a car for over 800 million kilometres annually. Moreover, thousands of marine mammals and birds...
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...Ocean Microplastics”, is about how a 15 year study conducted about the plastic particles in the Great Pacific Garbage Patch. The results indicate the microplastic particles spread through the Pacific Ocean quickly and in great numbers due to the lack of cleaning the garbage and also due to the human behavior of litter. The majority microplastic particles are released from the center point of the Great Pacific Garbage Patch. The newspaper article will be supporting my position since the article discusses the results of the experiment. The results indicate the microplastic particles are exponentially increasing in an uncountable...
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...Plastic bags end up as litter that fouls the landscape, and kill thousands of marine mammals every year that mistake the floating bags for food. Plastic bags that get buried in landfills may take up to 1,000 years to break down, and the process they separated into smaller and smaller toxic particles that contaminate soil and water. The production of plastic bags consume millions of gallons of oil that could be used for fuel and heating. Paper bags, which many people consider a better alternative to plastic bags, carry their own set of environmental problems. According to many environmentalists, is high-quality reusable shopping bags made of materials that don’t harm the environment during production and don’t need to be discarded after each use. You can find a good selection of high-quality reusable bags. In addition, many organic grocery stores and consumer co-operatives carry reusable shopping bags. The methods of Plastic bags are significantly more environmentally friendly than paper bags. An environmental advocacy group, plastic bags generate 42% less greenhouse gas emissions than un composted paper bags and 68% less greenhouse gas emissions than composted paper bags. Additionally, plastic bags consume less than 6% of the water needed to make paper bags. More than 16 plastic bags can be created for every one paper bag using the same amount of water. Plastic bags consume 71% less energy during production than paper bags. Using paper bags instead of plastic...
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...Question 2: The Coase Theorem states that if property rights are well defined, and no significant transaction costs exist, an efficient allocation of resources will result even with externalities (Harris, 2002). Coase argued that market failure, can be privately solved to an optimal level when the legal system intervenes, giving property rights to one of the parties involved. Essentially, the theorem is based on two underlying assumptions which are low transaction costs and the assignment of property rights. Firstly, the assignment of property rights is the right to have the exclusive use of their property, including the right to buy and sell it (Hubbard et al, 2009). Initially, polluters pollute because they believe they have the right too although the third party affected believe they have the right to less pollution. Hence without property rights, an inefficient level of equilibrium will be produced until the point in which the market intervenes assigning property rights. Another vital assumption is low transaction costs, which are the costs in time and other resources that parties incur in the process of carrying out an exchange of goods and services (Hubbard et al, 2009). As transaction costs of negotiating, binding and monitoring the agreement are very expensive when many individuals are involved, the transaction costs can exceed the gains from the transaction itself. When these two assumptions are held, an optimal solution will be reached when the monetary damage of one...
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...10-million-square-mile oval known as the North Pacific subtropical gyre. Nicknamed the "Eastern Garbage Patch," this buoyant stew of toxic pollution-most of which is plastic-is only one of five such garbage heaps caught in the swirling high-pressure currents characteristic of gyres. The others reside in the South Pacific, the North and South Atlantic, and the Indian Ocean. And each year, perhaps unwittingly, each one of us adds to plastic to the heap. Plastic makes it into our oceans in a variety of ways. About twenty percent of it comes from goods lost from boats: i.e. accidental loss of fishing tackle and other recreational gear, massive shipping containers carrying millions of plastic items washed overboard during severe storms; litter from pleasure boats, or illegal dumping of unwanted goods. Beachgoer’s debris is also a contributor. The other eighty percent is swept in from land. Just as Nonpoint Source Pollution from fertilizers, detergents, and pesticides find their way into our waters, so too are plastic items washing into our blue oceans. A discarded bottle cap or an empty sandwich bag thoughtlessly left along the side of the road will eventually be blown or kicked or washed into a storm drain, which will then shoot it straight into the ocean. Not all plastic floats. In fact, nearly half of it sinks to the bottom of...
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...computers means more plastic this causes your city and town landfill tax to increase to keep these problems under control. According to the U.S census bureau say there are 309,941,768 people in the us, a growth of 3.3 million people a year. With the average 4 person house hold accumulating 1 ton of waste per year, this could be a very serious problem for the ecosystem and the earth as well. The fact that pollution is on our highways, in our lakes and streams at the beaches and even even on top of Mt Everest is that litter effects both living and nonliving it has no prejudice. Litter effects use as a society in a lot of ways. Litter can be a safety hazard on the road from a survey done by green eco services(2009) twenty five thousand car accidents happen every year because of litter related conditions on the highway which in turn effects insurance companies to raise their premiums. Forty eight percent of Americas admit to littering. Taxpayers pay to pick up litter in Cities, Counties, States, National Agencies, Forestry’s, Park and Recreation Departments, Prisons, Corporate clean ups and this cost the tax payer not millions but billions of dollars every year. Some E.P.A facts * 50% of United States lakes are unfit for swimming and fishing * 40% of United States waterways are polluted * 35% of United States...
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...Resources and Energy Paper SCI/256 July 09, 2013 . Marine Ecosystem Out of all of the large and natural resources available for generating electricity in the United States, it is the ocean. Ocean energy may be the last investigated for its potential. The ocean is so vast and deep, until recently, it was assumed that no matter how many chemicals or how much trash humans dumped into the ocean, the effects would be negligible. Dumping into oceans have even got the catchphrase: “The solution to pollution is dilution” (National Geographic, 2013) Impacts Associated With Agriculture Pollutants from agriculture have affected the marine’s ecosystem in ways that may not be reversible, and may also be slowly harming rivers, streams, and coastal waters. Pesticides and fertilizer are two major components that have disturbed the marine’s ecosystem; both contain harmful chemicals that can be hazardous to living organisms in the water. Fertilizer and pesticide run-off from large farms may have initiated bursts of marine algae which may disrupt the ocean’s ecosystem by causing massive blooms in marine waters (Schwartz, 2005). Winds cause nitrogen and other nutrients from the seafloor to surface, which promote the growth of algae called phytoplankton. Phytoplankton is a main source of food for many living organisms in the marine waters. Agricultural pollutants may have triggered phytoplankton to produce harmful blooms in tides, which are giving-off poisonous toxins to marine life. These poisonous...
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...Natural Resources and Energy Paper SCI/256 Marine Ecosystem Out of the majority of the expansive and common assets accessible for creating power in the United States, it is the sea. Sea vitality may be the last researched for its potential. The sea is so tremendous and profound, up to this point, it was accepted that regardless of what number of chemicals or the amount of waste people dumped into the sea, the impacts would be irrelevant. Dumping into seas have even got the catchphrase: "The answer for contamination is weakening" (National Geographic, 2013) Effects Associated With Agriculture Toxins from horticulture have influenced the marine's biological community in ways that may not be reversible, and may likewise be gradually hurting waterways, streams, and waterfront waters. Pesticides and compost are two noteworthy segments that have irritated the marine's environment; both contain unsafe chemicals that can be perilous to living life forms in the water. Compost and pesticide keep running off from substantial ranches may have started blasts of marine green growth which may disturb the sea's biological community by creating monstrous sprouts in marine waters (Schwartz, 2005). Winds cause nitrogen and different supplements from the ocean bottom to surface, which advance the development of green growth called phytoplankton. Phytoplankton is a primary wellspring of nourishment for some living creatures in the marine waters. Farming toxins may have activated phytoplankton...
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...Ocean Resources Paper (Option 2) Chelsea Ellis SCI/275 March 1, 2014 Tami McConnell Ocean Resources Paper (Option 2) Our oceans are at a greater risk than ever for acidification, dying coral reefs, over fishing, mercury pollution, litter, and trash you can actual see floating from space, and so much more. The oceans are our biggest resource for living, for life on Earth… they supply us with our air in every breath we take. Oceans gives us 50% to 70% of our air!! They need our help if we want to continue the joys of salt life and watching our fellow salt-water friends swim about happily. * Describe the problem and how it came about I would like to discuss acidification and the harms of it. I didn’t know that much about this problem before going into all the research, I knew our oceans we in dire need of help, but I had no idea how bad the acidification has gotten. Ocean acidification is when carbon dioxide (CO2) is absorbed by seawater and those chemical reactions that occur reduce the seawater pH, carbonate ion concentration, and saturation states of biologically important calcium carbonate minerals (NOAA, 2014). Our carbon footprint is killing not only the oceans animals, but we are killing ourselves here. Acidification is especially harmful to the little plankton, oysters, and shellfish. It’s harmful to the coral and the star fish that attach themselves to the coral, the fish that swim in the reefs, sea otters, and even the whales until eventually it finds...
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...not only dynamic but also holistic and seeks to produce results of the complex problems. Systems thinking is the only critical way to solve complex issues impeding sustainability challenges and develop quality solutions. Since its conception in 1920 by Jan Smuts Holism, it has developed and solved many issues (Gharajedaghi p.2013 558). Pollution is a complex issue which is intertwined in different processes and impacts in diverse ways. Thus, the topic is significance in pursuing ways to help solve the pollution. Ocean pollution also referred to as marine pollution is a wicked problem which has been increasing in complexity day in day out. This is because of the increasing population growth which stands at 7.2 billion worldwide (Noga & Wolbring 2013 p.3615). The increased industry establishment is directly proportional to chemical waste which settle in the oceans. It causes death of marine animals and plants hence poor marine ecology. The aim of this essay is to use the knowledge and skills acquired in role of systems thinking to address Ocean pollution as a sustainability challenge. It will explore various sources of ocean pollution, types and elucidate possible strategies which could be adopted as mitigation...
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...Mariah Burkhardt Sharon Janusz ENG 121: English Composition I 30 October 2014 The True Price for Plastic Did you know that plastic bags are one of the largest sources of litter in the world? According to research discussed on “How Stuff Works”, plastic bags can take anywhere from two hundred to a thousand years to break down. They also give off toxic chemicals when burned, so burning is a hazardous way to rid of the material. Because of this it is difficult to safely dispose of plastic. According to the same site, less than 1% of plastic bags used in the US are recycled due to recycling costs being much higher than the recovered plastic is worth. States are attempting to find new strategies to reduce the number of plastic carry-out bags from grocery stores and other retail outlets to help with the issues arising. They believe regulating the use of bags can lower harmful impacts to oceans, rivers, lakes and the wildlife that inhabits them. Reducing bag use can also relieve pressure on landfills and waste management. One of the methods being experimented with is charging for the plastic bags given out at grocery stores. This is definitely something stores should try to help out both economically and environmentally. Economically, charging for plastic could help the world in a few ways. It would profit the community, it would put more money into recycling as more people buy reusable bags, and it could cut costs on manufacturing these bags, making it possible to put money...
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