Is the Great Pacific Garbage Patch growing?

As more and more plastics are discarded into the environment, microplastic concentration in the Great Pacific Garbage Patch will only continue to increase.

Is the Great Pacific Garbage Patch growing or shrinking?

The patch covers an estimated 1.6 million square kilometers—roughly three times the size of France—and currently floats between Hawaiʻi and California. The Great Pacific Garbage Patch is rapidly expanding as rotating currents called gyres pull more and more trash into the area.

Is the garbage patch getting bigger?

Teague, K. (2021, November 8). That giant trash patch in the middle of the ocean is getting bigger.

How much has the Great Pacific Garbage Patch growing?

After three years of data collection, researchers from the Ocean Cleanup—a Dutch nonprofit that works on developing technologies to scrub the oceans—have calculated that the patch is four to sixteen times larger than ever before determined—and it’s growing.

How long has the Great Pacific Garbage Patch been growing?

The patch is believed to have increased “10-fold each decade” since 1945. Estimated to be double the size of Texas, the area contains more than 3 million short tons (2.7 million metric tons) of plastic. The gyre contains approximately six pounds of plastic for every pound of plankton.

How big is the Pacific gyre?

The North Pacific Subtropical Gyre is formed by four currents rotating clockwise around an area of 20 million square kilometers (7.7 million square miles): the California current, the North Equatorial current, the Kuroshio current, and the North Pacific current.

How many garbage Patchs are in the ocean?

There are five gyres to be exact—the North Atlantic Gyre, the South Atlantic Gyre, the North Pacific Gyre, the South Pacific Gyre, and the Indian Ocean Gyre—that have a significant impact on the ocean. The big five help drive the so-called oceanic conveyor belt that helps circulate ocean waters around the globe.

How big is the Great Pacific Garbage Patch 2021?

1.6 million square kilometers

The GPGP covers an estimated surface area of 1.6 million square kilometers, an area twice the size of Texas or three times the size of France. To formulate this number, the team of scientists behind this research conducted the most elaborate sampling method ever coordinated.