The Great Pacific Garbage Patch

Spanning a whopping 1.6 million square kilometers, the Great Pacific Garbage Patch is an accumulation of plastic between California and Hawaii. Even though it doesn’t seem like a hospitable place, a recent study conducted by Nature Ecology & Evolution discovered that multiple coastal species have been able to survive and reproduce on this garbage patch. Scientists have found that the plastic patch allows the creation of new floating ecosystems that wouldn’t have been able to survive in the ocean otherwise.

Biologists have long believed that although species can occasionally travel on floating debris, they aren’t able to establish new communities there because of differences between their original and the debris’ environment such as temperature, available nutrients, and salinity. However, after the tsunami in Japan in March 2011, debris floating in the oceans, due to its aftermath, revealed to carry coastal species that had surprisingly managed to live there long-term. Curious as to whether this was purely a coincidence or a new scientific idea, lead researcher Linsey Haram and her team decided to sample some of the plastic from the Great Pacific Garbage Patch.

On the 150 plastic items examined, 484 marine organisms were found laying on the surface. This accounted for more than 46 species most of which were coastal species and not as many of the open-ocean species that were expected to be found. However, the coastal and open-ocean species were found living together, demonstrating some sort of interaction between them which is a new idea for the scientific community. Biogeographer Ceridwen Fraser said, “As humans, we are creating new types of ecosystems that have potentially never been seen before.” The research has revealed that organisms thriving on floating plastic are a common occurrence, but it also provides opportunities for species to become invasive. The consequences of introducing new species and creating new ecosystems into different areas of the ocean are not fully understood yet and suggests the need for further research in the future.

Works Cited

Chasan, Aliza. “Great Pacific Garbage Patch in Middle of the Ocean Now Home to Coastal Species.” CBS News, CBS Interactive, 17 Apr. 2023, https://www.cbsnews.com/news/great-pacific-garbage-patch-home-to-coastal-ocean-species-study/.

Greenfieldboyce, Nell. “This Floating Ocean Garbage Is Home to a Surprising Amount of Life from the Coasts.” NPR, NPR, 17 Apr. 2023, https://www.npr.org/2023/04/17/1169844428/this-floating-ocean-garbage-is-home-to-a-surprising-amount-of-life-from-the-coas.

Kottasová, Ivana. “The Great Pacific Garbage Patch Is Now so Huge and Permanent That a Coastal Ecosystem Is Thriving on It, Scientists Say.” CNN, Cable News Network, 17 Apr. 2023, https://www.cnn.com/2023/04/17/world/plastic-pollution-ocean-ecosystems-intl-climate/index.html.

Snowden, Scott. “300-Mile Swim through the Great Pacific Garbage Patch Will Collect Data on Plastic Pollution.” Forbes, Forbes Magazine, 12 Oct. 2022, https://www.forbes.com/sites/scottsnowden/2019/05/30/300-mile-swim-through-the-great-pacific-garbage-patch-will-collect-data-on-plastic-pollution/.

Vlamis, Kelsey. “The Great Pacific Garbage Patch Is Actually a Unique Ocean Ecosystem Teeming with Sea Creatures That Cling to the Plastic Trash.” Business Insider, Business Insider, https://www.businessinsider.com/great-pacific-garbage-patch-teems-sea-life-clings-to-plastic-2023-4.