Make a difference

If everyone that went on vacation picked up Just One Piece of rubbish the difference we’d make to the world would be huge.  

If every tourist who visited the Caribbean this year picked up Just 1 Piece of trash (2 ounce avg.) 1,417 metric tons would be collected.

If every tourist who visited South East Asia picked up Just 1 Piece of litter (50 grams avg.) 5,783 metric tons would be collected.

If every tourist who visited the Mediterranean picked up Just 1 Piece 1 piece of rubbish (2 ounce avg.) 12,473 metric tons would be collected.

That is the equivalent weight of nearly 1000 Volkswagen Beetles!

Why should we bother? Well, here are some dirty facts to think about…

Plastic constitutes approximately 90% of all trash floating on the ocean’s surface, with 46,000 pieces of plastic per square mile

The North Pacific Gyre off the coast of California is home to the Great Pacific Garbage Patch, the largest ocean garbage site in the world. The floating mass of plastic is twice the size of Texas, with plastic pieces outnumbering sea life by a measure of 6 to 1.

In European waters, up to 100,000 pieces of litter visible to the naked eye were counted per square kilometre on the sea floor. In Indonesia, the figure was even higher – up to 690,000 pieces per square kilometer In 2008, our global plastic consumption worldwide has been estimated at 260 million tons, and, according to a 2012 report by Global Industry Analysts, plastic consumption is to reach 297.5 million tons by 2015

How long does it take for trash in the ocean to decompose?

A tin can that entered the ocean in 1986 will finally decompose in 2036
A plastic bottle that entered the ocean in 1986 will finally decompose in 2436
A glass bottle that entered the ocean in 1986 will finally decompose 1,001,986

Source: http://worldoceanreview.com/en/files/2010/10/k4_d_abfallabbau_meer_e_en1.jpg

Top ten marine debris items:

1. Cigarettes/ cigarette filters
2. Bags (plastic)
3. Food wrappers/ containers
4. Caps/lids
5. Beverage bottles (plastic)
6. Cups, plates, forks, knives, spoons (plastic)
7. Beverage bottles (glass)
8. Beverage cans
9. Straws, stirrers (plastic)
10. Bags (paper)