By Selwyn Duke

One of the tragedies of global warming propaganda is that it distracts us from bona fide problems.  Like, for instance, the continent-size garbage stew fouling the Pacific Ocean.

What is the garbage stew?  It’s a 3.5 million ton collection of garbage — 80 percent of which comprises plastics — that is twice the size of Texas.  It sits in a no-man’s land of ocean between California and Hawaii, a place where few ever venture.

As big a mess as it is, it’s emblematic of an even bigger problem.  Another humongous garbage stew sits somewhere off the coast of Japan, and we have to wonder what other collections of debris foul other oceans.

The main problem is plastic.  The material is amazing in many ways and has made life better in certain respects.  The issue, though, lies with one of its strengths: Its durability and resistance to breakdown.  Plastic takes as close to forever to degrade as one can imagine, which means that virtually all the plastic that has found its way into our oceans during the last five decades is still there.  And the volume has been increasing ten-fold every decade since the 1950s.

This speaks to the magnitude of the problem; it’s not just a matter of monstrous garbage stews but also the fact that our oceans are littered with plastic, from large pieces down to small fibers.  These materials are often ingested by birds and marine mammals, which sometimes leads to their deaths.  In fact, on Midway Atoll, there is another battle being fought: Between albatrosses and garbage.  Forty percent of the albatross chicks are dying, their stomachs laden with junk (their parents mistake plastic and other debris for food).  I suppose now we’re an albatross around their necks.

Lamentably, this is a problem that was entirely avoidable.  We can complain about smog, but at least there are benefits derived from the activities that cause its constituent pollutants to be released into the air; namely, the production of goods and energy, and modern modes of transport. 

The plastic in the ocean, however, is there due to sloppiness, dumping and littering.  People throw these materials into the street, the materials find their way into storm drains which feed into rivers, which, in turn, feed into the ocean.  And there is no excuse for littering; if people would simply exercise some self-control, we wouldn’t have these problems.  In other words, don’t preach about "environmentalism," because conservation (the word that should be used) starts at the end of your arm.  Alas, though, man’s nature won’t change.

Cleaning up the garbage stew would be a monumental, multi-billion-dollar task, and I wouldn’t hold my breath waiting for it to happen.  The leviathan of filth occupies international waters, and no country wants to step up to the plate and tackle the monster.  Although I think that if any conservation imperative warrants an international effort, this is it.

Of course, we’d have to dispense with global warming propaganda long enough to actually focus on what matters.  And I won’t hold my breath waiting for that, either.