Plastic-Karma? Industrial seed of self destruction? vs A Floatation Resource?
Picture above from NOAA. Ocean currents distribute many tons of accumulated plastic trash, because it floats. It seems as though there are too many tons for routine clean up. The loosely floating plastic may prove too awkwardly troublesome to recycle as a carbon resource. Indifferent powers that be do trash earth's gift of water and ecosystems, (by omitting to observe industrial self immolation, now evident). At least, consider cleanup solutions. Laws fail to solve littering issues. Who will start the clean up? Following are some mere concepts by Bo Atkinson, Maine USA.
First, the baler concept pictured above would pull flotsam into mechanical rollers which "roll" the garbage in order to make a cylindrical bale for subsequent recycling. Harpoon-like devices could "lasso" floating garbage clusters and reel them in for a twisting compaction to make bales. A "spaghetti fork" also is lowered into the garbage to provide more traction. After twirling the trash in sync with the rollers, the fork is retracted upwards to release the bale. It is expected that some cohesion will result from the trash itself, while additional baling filaments or wires are also likely required.
If a floating island could be built with the bales, could such an island economically withstand storms or tsunamis? If sustainability proved possible, then at least one re-use of the material exists. What purpose could such an island serve? I would think a good preliminary use to consider is to establish a base for researching long-term plastic-waste research. However, the artificial flotation property of plastic may yet serve a more important, useful service.
Consider the vast amount of plastic that does in fact float . Note the location in relatively calmer areas of the oceans. If massive floatation was wanted, here it has already been delivered and awaits intelligent assembly. Sea life awaits it's rendering into a less harmful format. Collecting floating bales may help jump start a better feasibility study, to further evaluate bale collection for intelligent use. At least, baling will reduce the maiming caused by loosely floating trash.
Continued baling research may find means to prevent wild life molestation. Floating islands as a base for further research, also brings to mind aqua culture research. Are ocean trash-gyres distant from coveted fishing turfs? If so, then aqua culture research may benefit from a new operational base. Could bales be formed into floating,artificial atolls?
Many pictures of the amazing gyre phenomenon can be seen on the www. Estimates of size say it is larger than small countries in expanse, (surface area).
"Trash vortex"
"Great Pacific Garbage Patch"
Gyres: A recycling force of it's own design? Nature: A die-hard, self-corrective system but would it include humanity's self destruction? Are we that close to the tipping point of self destruction through destruction of ocean life? From the web, next, is an illustration of some of the larger ocean gyres, around the world. Gyres offer us some help to capture the trash, but will any power that be do something positive? I wonder.
Would a working solution encourage people to dump more aggressively in the oceans? It is said much of this trash comes from land disposal which carelessly blows into the sea. Are so many human lives disparaged by leadership examples in our world, that they care less? Is there no hope for inspiring all humans to prosper, rather than planning an unproductive despair, for the masses? I would hope so and want to work on attainable solutions. I will experiment with more design models such as an artificial, floating island, for a gyre.
I am intrigued by this real problem and invite people to think about this idea with me. boa1@pivot.net
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More of Bo's structural ideas, click here.
