November 9, 2021 — In the Pacific Ocean, two massive floating islands of trash extend for hundreds of miles, together making up the Great Pacific Garbage Patch. The pervasive vortices of human-made garbage damage marine life, as well as the environment, and can even exacerbate human-caused climate change.
In August, the environmental nonprofit Ocean Cleanup deployed Jenny, its first large-scale cleaning system, which has since removed more than 63,000 pounds of trash. In October, Ocean Cleanup called that work the “beginning of the end of the Great Pacific Garbage Patch.” It’s a start. But the clumps of human-made trash are getting larger.
Ocean trash is only one area of focus as world leaders continue to meet for COP26 this week, the United Nations Climate Change Conference, which lasts through Nov. 12. At the summit, roughly 200 nations are meeting in Glasgow, Scotland, to negotiate an updated agreement of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change in an attempt to keep temperatures from rising 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels.
Plastic pollution and microplastics have been shown to contribute to climate change, since heat can cause them to release greenhouse gases. Addressing the climate crisis requires reducing pollution in the oceans, which collect 8 million tons of plastic yearly.