Kelly Cassidy writes (about collecting plastics in the ocean):
> >Where would you put it once you've got it?

......to which Michael Price replies:
> Are there no industrial recyclers of plastic?

The only plastic recycling programs I know about are very specific about what's
acceptable and what's not--all those plastic code letters and numbers. And be
sure it's clean before hauling it to the collection site. How will this work
for Bic lighters, for example? Toothbrushes? Shards of unidentifiable
this-and-that? Miles of driftnet tangled with everything else the ocean
carries? Yes, some floating plastics might be recyclable -- even re-usable
(hey, some discarded toothbrushes are perfectly good!) -- but it's not as
simple as keeping the tofu tubs, milk jugs, and pop bottles
segregated in a corner of the kitchen.

The sheer quantity, too, is impossible for me to fathom (oops, unintended
nautical pun). It will take a lot of ships a lot of trips to gather up this
pile of trash, at least some of which (as Richard Rowlett discussed) is
certifiably hazardous. What will become of it once collected? A small
percentage could be re-used/recycled, perhaps, but the rest? Terrestrial
dumping is our only alternative, isn't it? Who will accept it (Kelly's
question)?

Naysaying's easy, ain't it? Honestly, I'd like to believe that the ocean can
be cleaned up. You're right, Michael, that a huge amount of progress could be
made if it became important enough to the right government or industry or
multibillionaire. This is just one of Earth's deep troubles, though, and a
largely invisible one.
--
Scott Richardson
northeast Seattle
salix at halcyon.com