When I was in elementary school one of my favorite things was the balloon release where we would all write our names on tags attached to helium balloons and set them free into the world at an assembly then wait patiently for people to contact our school to tell us how far our balloons had traveled, usually exotic places like Livermore, California.  As a child before the age of the internet it gave me a feeling of how large and interconnected the outside world was.  Long story short, I have a sentimental attachment to balloons.

Since that time I have become indoctrinated with how helium balloons can end up drifting out into the ocean and killing marine animals, and I’ve since avoided balloons but the ten-year-old child in me secretly hoped that the whole thing was blown out of proportion.  But now I’m sold.

In Bermuda a few days ago, while conducting a survey of plastic on a beach transect, I came across a fish that appeared to have eaten a balloon attached to a white ribbon.  The cheerful white ribbon was entangled around the insides of the rotting fish’s abdomen (picture attached).  Today, while I was at the helm of the Sea Dragon at least 200 miles from land, I saw a silver and blue partially deflated balloon float by in the waves.  We had been at sea for a couple days and the waves were so choppy that it had been at least a day since we’d seen anything except for a few stray storm petrels (birds) and a pod of dolphins.

Parties may last a few hours and sentiment from Valentines balloon may last a few days, but who knows how long that balloon will last in the ocean and what marine animal may become entangled in it.

The captain says that “big weather” is coming in tomorrow, wish me luck!

If you are inspired to support my plastic bag work, please feel free to make a small donation via the “Donate” button at the bottom of this page.  Donations are not tax deductible but will go directly towards expenses related to running my website and providing support to cities.

The Sea Dragon is the 72-foot sailboat used by The 5 Gyres Institute for many of its expeditions, including mine. I first learned about these expeditions out into the ocean to research plastic pollution several years ago by watching a Frontline documentary about the discovery of the Great Pacific Garbage Patch. As soon as I saw it, I wanted to go. Then I became acquainted with non-profit groups, including 5 Gyres, conducting research voyages that “normal people” could raise money to take part in. They, unfortunately, commonly required about 30 days or so commitment, and you had to raise $10k+ to join.

I got to know the 5 Gyres Institute better over the years by attending their lectures and speaking at conferences with Stiv. As soon as I heard that they were going on a seven day voyage in the Atlantic I was in.

When I first committed to the voyage, I had grandiose plans to brush up on my swimming and hit the gym to build my strength and read books about sailing and familiarize myself with Atlantic birds and wildlife. In the end, I just ended up verifying that there would be life vests (personal floatation devices) provided, and showed up.

The first two days aboard the Sea Dragon have been more trying than I’d expected. The weather is great, and leaving the clear turquoise water of Bermuda was beautiful and the sea was calm.  Then the realization hit me that I’d be sharing close quarters for a week, including bunking in basically a hallway room, with five other people. My little cave of a bunk could barely fit my six foot frame – with only three feet of vertical space ….. and the only other designated personal space that I have is a 2’x3’ cubby.

And then there’s the sea sickness. Luckily I don’t generally get sea sick, and have been lucky enough to not have to take any sea sickness medicine….. but the look on everyone else’s faces has been dreadful.  A few people are incapacitated by sickness and we aren’t even in rough seas yet. Writing a blog on a small-ish boat is a bit more difficult that I thought as well, since I don’t want to press how long I can stand to be down in the stuffy galley before succumbing to sea sickness myself.  I must say though, sitting up towards the bow and looking out at the vastness of the ocean is inspiring.

We have not been seeing as many big plastic pieces or debris fields as I was expecting, but our trawling the ocean surface for microplastic has been disturbingly fruitful. We trawl the ocean surface for one hour every few hours and we generally get a sample of sargassum, a type of seaweed, (we are near the Sargasso Sea) mixed with microplastic particles and small ocean critters including crabs, shrimp, and Sargasso toad fish. These plastic bits look very similar to what we saw in Bermuda. The attached picture shows a sample from trawling about 100 miles from Bermuda, which is full of sargassum and tiny bits of plastic. How intertwined the sargassum and plastic is shows that plastic is becoming part of the food chain and makes the idea of cleaning up plastics in the ocean seem even less viable.

Here is information about the sampling that we are doing:

http://5gyres.org/how_to_get_involved/travel_trawl/

If you are inspired to support my plastic bag work, please feel free to make a small donation via the “Donate” button at the bottom of this page. Donations are not tax deductible but will go directly towards expenses related to running my website and providing support to cities.

I first learned about ocean gyres in a very different context.  As an undergrad marine biology student at UC Santa Barbara over a decade ago.  We learned about gyres, basically little vortexes in the ocean caused by currents, which caused upwellings of nutrients from the bottom of the ocean in certain places in the open ocean, which lead to blooms of zooplankton and a whole complex food web. Now I’m embarking on a sailing voyage to one of these gyres, the North Atlantic Gyre, with a research group looking at how these very same currents now accumulate trash in sections of the open ocean. Most of the trash observed tends to be plastic because plastic takes so long to degrade and much of this plastic observed is polyethylene because it tends to be slightly less dense than sea water and thus floats.

I became involved with ocean plastic pollution and The 5 Gyres Institute through my plastic bag advocacy – I’m a lawyer and I spend an inordinate amount of my free time helping cities adopt plastic bag ordinances and avoid lawsuits by the plastics industry. One of the arguments that proponents of plastic bag reduction ordinances use is that single-use plastic consumption contributes to garbage patches in the ocean, particularly the Great Pacific Garbage Patch. The plastics industry has argued in court briefs that the garbage patches are not described properly, that they are not “islands” or “twice the size of Texas” and basically that if they are not being described properly that they are not a problem. I speak at public hearings against plastics industry attorneys and one of the main reasons I want to go on this trip is to gain first-hand knowledge of exactly what problems plastic causes in the ocean, so that I can help cities and environmental groups more aptly describe the problem.

So, I’m taking off of work for a week on an unlikely vacation. I’m sailing from Bermuda to Rhode Island on a 72 foot sail boat with twelve other people, many of whom I’ve never met, to work around the clock in four hour shifts learning to sail and collecting samples from the ocean’s surface and making observations. I do not think that I’ll see a lot of plastic bags on this trip because plastic bags are so thin that I’ve heard they tend to photo-degrade relatively quickly in the open ocean into smaller and smaller plastic bits and are not visible, but maybe I’ll see them. Getting a better sense of what’s out there is what this trip is all about.  Observing plastics in the ocean generally relates to my plastic bag advocacy as well, because one of my theories is that awareness of one’s plastic bag use, generally is a “gateway drug” of sorts for awareness of single-use plastic generally.

One of the interesting things about this voyage in particular is that it is in the North Atlantic Gyre. I live in New York City and almost every person that I mentioned my trip to asked me if I was going to the Pacific Ocean to look at plastic. The popular misconception seems to be that the only area where plastic presents a problem in the ocean is in the Great Pacific Garbage Patch. In reality, there is a large garbage patch in the Atlantic as well, but it is not as well studied or publicized. Since I am working on plastic bag ordinances in NYC and surrounding communities, it is important for me to get a sense of what the plastic trash in the Atlantic garbage patch looks like, because that’s where much of the trash from the east coast could eventually end up.

The first stop on my trip was Bermuda, where I attended guest lectures by The 5 Gyres Institute and conducted observations of microplastics on transects at beaches. I was also lucky enough to spend some time with the President of a local environmental group in Bermuda, to discuss plastic bag ordinances and get an insider’s tour of the island and insight into Bermuda’s unique environmental challenges. Not the least of which, Bermuda in is a unique position because it is very close to the North Atlantic Gyre and some of the trash that accumulates in the garbage patch ends up “belching” its contents on to Bermuda’s beaches – and we saw an alarming amount of microplastic in our beach transects.

Microplastic means plastic that has been weathered and photodegraded to the point where much of it looks like little tiny faded aquarium pebbles. We sampled parts of a beach long the high tide mark, picking out all of the plastics that had been “belched” on to the beach in the last high tide. I found it disturbingly difficult to tell which pebbles were shell or rock fragments and which were plastic, which I felt did not bode well for animals that are not even aware that they should be distinguishing between the two. We also found a lot of larger pieces of plastic, much of which was riddled with bite-sized chunks missing and/or was being colonized by other animals, including barnacles – like the piece of expanded polystyrene (commonly known as styrofoam)that I am holding in the picture below.  Plastic is not just polluting the ocean, it seems to be quickly becoming part of the ecosystem, as food (which provides no nourishment and often remains stuck in the digestive track of some animals) and as habitat.

The microplastic on Bermuda’s beaches seems to be an indicator of things to come on this trip. The problem seems not to be so much a floating island of easily recognizable plastic debris, but something like an aquarium tank shaken up so that all of the plastic pebbles are suspended in the water column and entwined with algae.

And the adventure begins . . .

Here is information about the sampling that we will be doing:

http://5gyres.org/how_to_get_involved/travel_trawl/

Here is a link to a recent presentation that I gave about how plastic bag reduction laws help address plastic pollution in the ocean (my presentation starts at 12:41):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iwQge2aCiG4

Here is a link to info about other crew members on my voyage:

http://5gyres.org/posts/2013/05/29/meet_the_5_gyres_north_atlantic_gyre_expedition_crew/

If you are inspired to support my plastic bag work, please feel free to make a small donation via the “Donate” button at the bottom of this page. Donations are not tax deductible but will go directly towards expenses related to running my website and providing support to cities

Also please register at BagItNYC.org to get involved in NYC campaign & attend this event on June 24th with Council Member Brad Lander in Park Slope (event info pasted below):

Greenwood Baptist Church, 461 6th St. at the corner of 7th Ave 7:00 pm EST Event to learn about single-use plastic bag legislation being proposed in NYC, ask questions, and find out how you can get involved! Dear Friends On Monday June 24 at 7 PM, please join City Council Member Brad Lander, the Green Party of Brooklyn, Sierra Club, NRDC, No Impact Project, Citizens Committee for New York City, Sane Energy, NYC Friends of Clearwater, PlasticBagLaws.org and BagItNYC for an informative evening to learn about the massive environmental impact that single-use plastic bags have in NYC, and the NYC campaign to do something about it. This free event will take place at Greenwood Baptist Church, at 461 6th Street at the corner of 7th Avenue in Park Slope. MORE COSPONSORS ARE WELCOMED. Speakers will include Council Member Brad Lander, who will be introducing legislation on plastic bags; Jennie Romer, who spear headed successful efforts in California to ban / restrict single use plastic bags and will discuss the various possible approaches (ban, fee, tax, etc); Colin Beavan (No Impact Man) and Carl Arnold (Sierra Club) We will also air several short videos on plastic bags, including “The Immortal Plastic Bag,” a mini-documentary about plastic bags in NYC. The event will be an excellent opportunity to learn more about this issue and find out how you can get involved with the plastic bag campaign in NYC. Nationwide, only a small percentage of plastic bags are recycled. Instead, they end up sitting in landfills, littering streets, clogging streams, fouling beaches and trees, or floating in rivers and oceans. Over 267 different species, from seabirds to turtles, seals, sea lions, whales, and fish, have suffered from entanglement or ingestion of marine debris, including plastic bags. Plastic does not dissolve; it breaks into tiny pieces and stays there for up to 1,000 years. Single use plastic bags have been banned or restricted in cities across the US, including California (75 local jurisdictions including LA County and San Francisco), Washington, DC and Austin, TX. In LA County, a ban on single-use plastic carryout bags and a 10-cent charge on paper bags lead to a 95% reduction in single-use plastic bags in the first year. In a recent NY Times article, the city’s recycling director pointed out that “Plastic shopping bags are an enormous problem for New York City,” noting that the city pays $10 million annually to landfill 100,000 tons of plastic bags. When plastic bags are carelessly placed into recycling bins for general plastic — which they often are — the bags jam and damage expensive sorting machines, which cost huge amounts to repair. For more information, please contact lilly@noimpactproject.org

Fundraiser for Plastic Research in the Ocean & Screening of Mini-Documentary About Plastic Bags in NYC

Jennie Romer, founder of plasticbaglaws.org, will be sailing across part of the Atlantic Ocean in June (from Bermuda to Rhode Island) on a 72-foot sail boat with The 5 Gyres Institute to study single-use plastic pollution that has made its way from land to the middle of the ocean.  Jennie needs to raise $3000 for a spot on the boat and is thus holding this fundraiser.

Click here for more info about Jennie’s voyage & fundraising:  http://igg.me/p/413396/x/3338635

We will also be screening a mini-documentry about plastic bags in NYC and the filmmakers will also be in attendance.

Location:  Tutu’s Brooklyn, 25 Bogart Street, Brooklyn (2 blocks from the Morgan stop off the L train)

7:15pm:  screening of short film about 5Gyres voyages

7:30pm:  screening of “The Immortal Plastic Bag”, a mini-documentary about plastic bags in NYC

7:45pm:  PowerPoint presentation by Jennie Romer about plastic bag laws

8:00pm:  Q&A with the mini-doc filmmakers & Jennie

8:30pm:  silent auction & raffle with prizes from prizes from ChicoBag, Jai Yoga Arts, Mothering Mother Bags, Big Tree Bottles, Tutu’s, local artists, and more.

View the facebook invite here:  https://www.facebook.com/events/412121008886699/

Please RSVP via the fb event page or if you’re not on fb RSVP to jennie@plasticbaglaws.org.

If you would like to donate something to the silent auction/raffle, please let Jennie know (art, gift certificates – anything would be greatly appreciated).

Great basic discussion of how plastic bag reduction laws help address plastic pollution in the ocean.  The presentation by Jennie starts at 12:41, including a discussion of biodegradable plastic bags at 39:46.

Click here for more video content from plasticbaglaws.org.

To get involved in the movement to adopt a plastic bag reduction ordinance (ban or fee) in NYC, please visit bagitnyc.org to register your support.  (Right now!)

Click here view a panel discussion about plastic bags in NYC, which took place at the Green Schools Alliance “Ban the Bag” conference at the Hewitt School in March.

View the full NYT article here:  http://www.nytimes.com/2013/05/19/sunday-review/should-america-bag-the-plastic-bag.html?pagewanted=1&_r=1&hp

Helena Durst, Member, MSWAB; and Durst Organization

Jennie Romer, Founder of plasticbaglaws.org and Atlantic Region Director of the Clean Seas Coalition

Ron Gonen, Deputy Commissioner, Recycling & Sustainability, Department of Sanitation, City of New York

More information:  http://swab2013bagit.bpt.me/

New York City, March 4, 2013 – On Saturday March 2, 2012, The Hewitt School’s Earth Committee and The Green Schools Alliance hosted a student conference focused on banning single-use plastic bags in New York City.  The conference was a call to action by students – and was a tremendous success.

Hewitt School students Jocelyn Goldberg and Caroline Hoffman said they were inspired to put together the conference upon learning that New York, unlike other major U.S. cities, was not seriously considering implementing a ban or bag fee on plastic bags.

The student conference resulted in very tangible results: a pledge to move forward with legislation.

“The campaign to confront plastic bag waste in New York City begins today,” said Council Member Brad Lander (Brooklyn’s 39th District). “When you see more plastic bags than birds on the branches of many city trees, the urgency of this issue is clear.  We are looking at what has worked around the country in order to introduce an effective bill in the coming months.”

“If you’re up for it, I’m up for it,” Lander said of partnering with student leaders to push for the legislation.

The conference included opening remarks by New York State Asseblymember Micah Kellner, who is currently sponsoring legislation in the state assembly that would allow New York cities to impose a fee on plastic bags.

The “All Star” panel of experts at the conference also included Ron Gonen, NYC’s Deputy Commissioner for Recycling and Sustainability, Eric Goldstein, NRDC’s New York City Environment Director, Jennie Romer, founder of plasticbaglaws.org, Stiv Wilson of 5 Gyres Institute, and Maite Quinn of Sims Municipal Recycling.

“Today is incredibly exciting because it is the first big step in moving toward a plastic bag ban. The students brought together key people that can actually make a plastic bag ban a reality in New York City – a council member, a state assembly member, someone form the mayor’s office, key environmental groups, and one of the city’s main recycling companies,” said Romer.

Romer was instrumental in the adoption of San Francisco’s expanded plastic bag ordinance and moved to New York last summer to build a coalition – the Clean Seas Coalition – made up of groups and individuals interested in adopting a plastic bag ordinance in New York City. “I look forward to continuing to build the coalition and work with these inspiring students.”

Quinn spoke of the extra energy and costs that plastic bags pose on the recycling process in NYC, which is why Sims supports such legislation. “In addition to the plastic bags that have commingled material in them, people also send us a lot of plastic bags inside plastic bags. All of this material is presently going to landfill and not being recycled,” she said. “We don’t want to see excess plastic bags coming into our stream. It costs us money to handle it and it costs us money to bring it to a landfill.”

Gonen encouraged the students to call their council members and have their parents and neighbors call their council members to get the legislation moving ahead, stressing that public engagement will be the only way that such legislation would move forward.

New Yorkers who want to get involved in the campaign to ban plastic bags in NYC should register at www.bagitnyc.org for updates and action alerts.

The Hewitt School Earth Committee Co-Presidents Caroline Hoffman and Jocelyn Goldberg.

BAN THE BAG CONFERENCE
Green Schools Alliance and The Hewitt School
Saturday, March 2, 2013 from 9:30 AM to 3:30 PM
Hewitt School, NYC

For more information here.
Registration: banthebagconference.eventbrite.com/#