Every year, millions of tons of plastic waste becomes marine debris, threatening the health of the ocean and our waterways. This introductory narrated video, produced by the Florida State University in collaboration with NOAA, discusses the following topics:
What is marine debris?
Where does marine debris come from?
Why is it a problem?
The video emphasizes that the ocean connects us all and that there is no place immune to marine debris. It also discusses how much debris reaches our ocean and the impacts it has on marine ecosystems.
The video highlights the work of Dr. Jenna Jambeck, a lead researcher on the amount of marine debris that enters our ocean globally. Her research served as a foundation for the Global Marine Debris Model developed by Dr. Chassignet's lab at FSU . This model allows us to visualize the path of marine debris from where it enters the ocean to where it is likely to end up (the video Global Marine Debris Model explores this model in more detail).
Finally the video concludes with the clear message: everyone can help. By taking simple but powerful choices such as refusing, reducing, reusing, and recycling, we can make a huge difference in the amount of debris that enters our ocean. We can also take actions to reduce the debris that already pollutes our waterways by participating in community cleanups. By understanding the power of our actions, and the science of marine debris, we can make a difference in our ocean's future.
Science On a Sphere
