A new contest from the 5 Gyres Institute
offers to let one winner join a three-week research voyage — described
as a 'hardcore sailing adventure' — through garbage patches in the North
Atlantic Ocean.
Published in the MotherNatureNetwork Fri, Apr 04, 201
A view
of marine debris from below, as fish or sea turtles might see it.
(Photo: U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration)
Are you at least 18 years old, capable of swimming 660 feet and concerned about plastic pollution in Earth's oceans? If so, the 5 Gyres Institute has a new online contest that may interest you.
While the Great Pacific Garbage Patch
is the most famous, it's just one of several ocean vortices, or gyres,
whose currents pick up marine debris and amass it into giant, nebulous
swirls of junk. These garbage patches
mostly contain countless plastic specks that slowly crumble without
decomposing, but they also lure larger detritus such as bags, bottles,
lost fishing nets and shipping containers.
This can harm wildlife in a variety of ways. Sea turtles choke on plastic bags, seabirds fatally fill their stomachs with plastic scraps and marine mammals become hopelessly entangled in stray fishing lines. Even the tiniest bits of plastic are dangerous, absorbing toxins like mercury from water and tempting fish to eat them. As larger predators eat those fish, the toxins bioaccumulate up the food chain.
The 5 Gyres Institute is helping lead efforts to investigate this
plastic plague, including a series of expeditions into Earth's five
major subtropical ocean gyres
to study what's out there and how it's affecting wildlife. The
California-based group is also big on educating the public, since ocean
pollution is a crowd-sourced problem that's difficult to prevent without
widespread cooperation.
The new contest
by 5 Gyres aims to address both missions: The group is requesting brief
videos from members of the public, between 30 and 45 seconds long,
explaining why they should be chosen to join its next research
expedition. That expedition — a three-week sailing trip across the North
Atlantic Ocean — will depart June 7 from Bermuda and end June 29 in
Iceland. It will enter the North Atlantic Gyre as well as the Viking
Gyre, two areas where marine debris has yet to be studied.
"The video doesn't need to be fancy, just a quick and sincere
appeal to gather online votes," says Stiv Wilson, 5 Gyres' policy
director. "Whoever gets the most votes wins a spot on the expedition
plus airfare to Bermuda and back from Iceland. That's a prize worth
$10,000."
All onboard meals as well as foul-weather gear will be provided for
the winner — who must be at least 18 years old — but 5 Gyres is careful
to warn this is "not a pleasure cruise."
"[T]he voyage is a 'hardcore sailing adventure' aboard 5 Gyres'
partner vessel, the Sea Dragon, a working ship where crew will be
expected to participate in every aspect of the expedition," the group
explains in a statement. "This will include participating in plastic
research, ship navigation and handling, and sharing of all onboard
duties such as cooking and cleaning. No sailing experience is required
but participants must be able to swim at least 200 meters."
5 Gyres will be accepting applications until 11:59 p.m. PDT on April 22, which is Earth Day (or 6:59 a.m. UTC on April 23). To submit your video or to vote for others, check out the contest homepage.
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