Ocean Shores

An amphipod (Hyperia macrocephala), a group of macroplanktons find a home in a small light bulb (6 cm in diameter). However, only access go inside bulb is less than 1 mm hole for filament cable but egg of many planktonic species are microscopic in size of 2-20 µm.
This demonstrates a good example of why we can't simply remove all debris from the ocean or shore. Many debris have come to shelter marine life, so it is harmful to them if we simply dispose of the debris they are in.

(Light bulb found during marine debris research at Ocean Shores on July 17, 2014)

"Reimagining" is an on-the-spot recycling system that transforms marine debris into other useful resources for those living on distant islands or in remote areas.
This streamlined and low-cost technology will assist people in areas where advanced recycling industries on the mainland do not provide assistance.
"Reimagining" may not be a permanent solution, but it will be a vital interim approach of marine debris treatment in distant places to improve disposal capabilities.
Another advantage of remade products is that marine debris will become traceable garbage that can be recovered promptly when better disposal procedures are devised.

Through our arrival situation surveys, we have found Asian marine debris produced in China, Korea, Japan, Taiwan, Indonesia and Malaysia. This gives us reason to believe that many of those trash came directly through the Kuroshio (Black Current).

Break between classes on a rainy day

Great lectures!

Recycling is only possible if the total cost of collecting and shipping is under the middleman or broker's market price.
By those business principles, plastic bottles and all other plastic marine debris collected at remote islands do not meet the marketable standard from the beginning. This is because shipping cost is already far exceeding the recycle broker's purchasing price.
It is not realistic to consider recycling debris and sending that to the mainland.
It is our aspiration to enable recycling and/or disposal of all the marine debris within small islands by ecologically friendly and low or no impact methods.

March 11, 2011: A magnitude 9.0 earthquake struck Japan, triggering a massive tsunami. The Government of Japan estimated in March 2012 that the tsunami swept about 5 million tons of debris into the ocean and that about 70% sank quickly. The remaining debris was dispersed far across the North Pacific, an area of ocean roughly three times the size of the lower 48 states. Some debris have already reached US and Canadian shores, and is expected to continue over the next several years. At this time, there is no way to accurately estimate how much debris is still floating - some likely sank or deteriorated.
This animation was created by ISLANDS4KIDS (www.islands4kids.org) to keep track of projected tsunami related debris drifting for the past four and half years.
There are four different courses. Three beginning at major prefectures (Iwate, Miyagi, Fukushima) and one from the Fukushima nuclear power plant hit by the tsunami.
This map and animation gives rough calculations based on the actual tidal current movement to know the whereabouts of dense areas of Japan Tsunami related marine debris. The size and area of diffusion (yellow glow) may differ from actual diffusion due to the impact of other meteorological conditions.
To identify ocean currents were referred to NOAA’s OSCURS database.

Our marine debris monitoring site at Ocean Shores.
Center of research site is located at 0.5 mile south of the Elk Creek River (47.178592, -124.197853).