The ocean garbage patches

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The ocean garbage patches 2007, June

A great catastrophe and human error exists in the pacific, eastern pacific and Atlantic oceans that is nothing less than devastating and mortifying when one learns about it for the first time.

For now for some it could be out of site or mind but it is looming out there like a science fiction monster growing bigger and bigger and getting closer and closer to being on your doorstep with no known solution to making it go away.

Most descriptions of a patch of garbage the size of Texas somewhere out there in the pacific ocean are merely trying to put into perspective the mass of garbage actually bigger than the size of Texas (and growing) that collects where the ocean currents and jet streams cross and meet out there in the ocean.

This problem affects mankind in many ways from the fish and seafood we eat to the health of the ocean eco system and earth itself.

More disturbing still is the fact is that there is no known way to clean this up. Besides the expensive monetary cost any operation would be to clean it, there is no known viable way to clean it all up due to the shear mass of it and the way it is spread out all over wide and deep in the oceans. Below the pictures are links to some pictures and articles on the subject and organizations/efforts trying to deal with this problem.