Tracking Trash: Flotsam, Jetsam, and the Science of Ocean Motion

Tracking Trash: Flotsam, Jetsam, and the Science of Ocean Motion by Loree Griffin Burns is a look at our oceans and what we are doing to them.

Since Benjamin Franklin ocean scientists have been looking at currents that affect travel. One way that Dr. Curtis Ebbesmeyer uses is to track things that have fallen off of container ships. For example, in May 1990 the Hansa Carrier ran into a major storm in the Pacific and lost 21 cargo containers. One was filled with Nike shoes.

Over the next few years, Ebbesmeyer and a society of beachcombers tracked where the shoes landed. The same was done with a container filled with 29,000 floating bath toys - ducks, frogs, beavers, and turtles. Where the toys were later found showed scientists how currents work.

One effect of the currents in the Pacific is that where they converge - in the middle of the ocean about half way between California and Hawaii - is a giant field of floating debris that has been said to be as big as Alaska. It is called the Great Garbage Patch. The plastics we use do not break down, they float, and they are creating a hazard for animals, fish and humans alike. From things that fall off of ships to discarded soda bottles that float down river to the ocean, this indestructible material is accumulating in the Pacific (and other places around the world's oceans).

As the plastic gets broken into smaller pieces through weather and rough currents, it is more likely to be eaten by sea turtles, jelly fish and birds. Larger pieces of plastic, including rope and fishing nets can cause tangles that kill fish and mammals. Though it is exciting to think of tracking a rubber ducky from a ship in the middle of the ocean to a beach in Oregon, the garbage and debris we create will eventually change the ocean currents, which in turn will affect the weather and climate. We all need to do our part to reduce the disposable plastics we use and make sure those we do purchase make it into a recycling bin.

Also check out this adult book on the subject - Moby Duck: The True Story of 28,000 Bath Toys Lost as Sea by Donovan Hohn.

Burns, Loree Griffin. (2007). Tracking Trash: Flotsam, Jetsam, and the Science of Ocean Motion. New York: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.