SEATTLE – It's Earth Day, and one manufactured menace threatening the world's oceans is plastics.

While estimates vary, many scientific studies find that about 8 million metric tons of plastic make their way into the ocean each year.

Michiel Abbing, author of the book "Plastic Soup", is a member of an organization of the same name, which derives from the large garbage patch found in the Pacific Ocean in 1997.

The foundation began fighting to keep plastics out of the ocean eight years ago, and Abbing says the issue has continued unabated.

"Since 2011, awareness has risen a lot,” he states. “A lot of NGOs, politicians and organizations are involved but, despite that fact, it seems to worsen instead of improving the situation."

Abbing notes that the fracking boom in the United States is pushing more petroleum into the market, which is a source of plastics.

Since the Plastic Soup Foundation began its mission, more has been discovered about the material's prevalence.

Last week, a study found microplastics have been "raining down" on a secluded area of France, 75 miles from the nearest town.

Research still is investigating the health effects of plastic on humans, but its harmful traces are well-documented, including on plankton and sea turtles.

Over the last month, whales have washed up on the shores of Italy and the Philippines with pounds of undigestible plastic in their stomachs.

Abbing says the simple solution is that we must reduce our production of plastics and adds that everyone has a role to play.

"We are all responsible for this, not only the consumers that buy plastic and throw it away, but also the producers and the politicians,” he states.
“We created the mess and we should solve the mess together."

The Plastic Soup Foundation has launched initiatives encouraging people to reduce their use of plastics, replacing them with reusable bags, cups and other utensils.

It also notes that synthetic fibers in clothing are a major source of plastic that gets into the ocean while washing clothes.

The Ocean Clean Wash initiative suggests folks use liquid soap and fabric softener and wash at a low temperature.


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ELKIN, N.C. - A Mitchell River watershed-restoration project has improved water quality and repaired damage from 2018's Hurricane Michael, as well as restoring habitat for trout and freshwater mussels.

The hurricane caused the river to choke up with tons of fine, sandy sediment. Darrell Westmoreland, chief executive of North State Environmental, who led the project construction along with Resource Institute, said that caused extensive erosion that also affected local landowners.

"It's just super important to stabilize our streams because when we don't stabilize them, we allow them to erode; that adds quite a bit of sediment to our water supply," he said, "and all that is a high cost to the public, because our water treatment plants have to filter that out."

Westmoreland said the project will repair and restore 1,500 feet of stream, and anticipates planting more than 500 trees and more than 1,600 live stakes and shrubs. He said the riparian plantings also will sequester carbon, which helps combat the effects of climate change in the region.

Westmoreland said the 10 inches of rain dumped onto the region during Hurricane Michael caused a historic dam to burst, affecting the habitat of brook floaters, a species of freshwater mussel in the stream.

"The impacts of the dam breaching left a lot of vertical banks," he said, "so it was adding a lot of sediment and silt to the stream, and a lot of loss of habitat."

Charles Anderson, project development manager at Resource Institute, explained that stream restoration can help ensure these areas are better equipped to handle future extreme weather events and boost flood resiliency.

"One of the things that we do in all of our projects in restoring a river system is reconnect the floodplain," he said. "By reconnecting the floodplain, we're giving a chance for the river to spread itself out, thereby going downstream with less force and impact."

The North Carolina Division of Environmental Quality provided funding for the work. So far, Surry County has completed 36 river-restoration projects, enhancing nearly 28 miles of stream in the region in partnership with Resource Institute.

ALBANY, N.Y. - Environmental groups want Gov. Kathy Hochul to sign a bill that mandates monitoring the state's drinking water for "emerging contaminants," including the widely used group of chemicals known as PFAS. The bill has passed both the state Assembly and Senate.

If it becomes law, said Rob Hayes, director of clean water for Environmental Advocates NY, every state water utility would be required to test for certain contaminants in drinking water. He said testing for the suggested 40 chemicals would help prevent harm, such as the crisis detected in 2015 in Hoosick Falls.

"We need to be proactive in protecting our drinking water," he said. "We should not allow contamination to fly under the radar for decades, and make people sick."

This week, the Environmental Protection Agency also announced a roadmap for PFAS pollution, which includes increasing monitoring, research and reporting requirements for toxic chemicals. However, Hayes said it wouldn't apply to small state water systems that are seeing a testing gap.

A letter signed by dozens of environmental groups said a toxic-chemical testing law created in response to the Hoosick Falls crisis wasn't implemented because the state Department of Health didn't provide a list of contaminants. Proponents of the bill now are insisting it be delivered to the governor as soon as possible.

"The Department of Health will have to begin a regulatory process that, within 90 days, will produce a final list of emerging contaminants for water utilities all across the state to test for," Hayes said. "So, the sooner the governor signs the bill, the sooner the communities will start finding out what's in their drinking water."

The testing suggestions include 27 PFAS chemicals and 13 additional "emerging contaminants" the EPA has identified as potentially harmful. The legislation also would require that the list of emerging contaminants must be updated every three years.

BRAINERD, Minn. - Minnesota boat owners are storing their watercraft for the winter. But that isn't stopping the conversation about responsible water recreation. Groups calling for more safety requirements say it's about preserving lakes for future seasons.

Watercraft used for certain lake activities like wakesurfing is getting bigger and more powerful. That's led to concerns about large waves harming shorelines and vegetation.

Jeff Forester, executive director of Minnesota Lakes and Rivers Advocates, said it's why his group wants the Department of Natural Resources to require a boat operator's safety certificate.

"Lakes are extremely complex and very fragile," said Forester. "So, the training in lake ecology that would come along with the boater operator certification I think could go a long way toward helping people protect and preserve lakes. "

He noted that Minnesota also just had its deadliest summer on lakes since 2005. The DNR says among fatalities, 17 stemmed from boating accidents.

The department is being asked to include the certificate language in its next agency bill in the Legislature. DNR officials say they support more education, but add it's too soon to say whether there will be talks to include it.

Supporters say it isn't about cracking down on boaters, as they understand how significant water recreation is to Minnesota.

Steve Frawley, chair of the government relations committee of the Gull Chain of Lakes Association, said he's worried about increased traffic from wakesurfing, and feels the training could be one of several solutions in ensuring that all residents enjoy the lakes for years to come.

"I think it would be very important to have some kind of a certification process so that people understand the impact of these boats," said Frawley, "especially on narrower and shallower lakes."

Current Minnesota statute does have permit language for teenagers. Forester called it a good first step.

But he said with boat sales increasing by 30% during the pandemic, it's clear there are new boat owners who could use some training.

"The boating industry is really innovative and has been changing a lot in the last few years," said Forester.

He said the sophisticated watercraft requires more skills and greater awareness.

The request calls for creating a working group to determine the parameters of a certification program.