Oceans for fish, not plastic

Marine plastic debris has moved up high on the international environmental agenda — and for good reason. (Shutterstock/File)

Douglas Broderick

PREMIUM

Jakarta ● Tue, February 7, 2017

Millions of Indonesians depend on oceans to feed their families. Fishermen, ferryboat drivers, tour guides and freight workers. When the ocean suffers, so do lives.

But 5.25 trillion pieces of plastic are swirling around in the world’s seas. Five giant “patches” of garbage are floating in the world’s oceans. They are nearly equivalent to the entire land mass of Indonesia. They’re growing. Patches have collected so much trash — mostly plastic — they can be seen from space.

Plastic production has risen steadily for fifty years. Out of 299 million tons of plastic produced in 2013 globally, 50 percent was for single-use packaging. When we order food to our homes, or ask for food and drink to “take away”, we are creating waste for personal conven...