where does all the trash in the pacific ocean come from
Great Pacific garbage patch There is no strong scientific data concerning the origins of pelagic plastics.[dubious â€“ discuss][citation needed] In a study published in 2014,[12] researchers sampled 1571 locations throughout the worlds oceans, and determined that discarded fishing gear such as buoys, lines, and nets accounted for more than 60%[13] of the mass of plastic marine debris. According to a 2011 EPA report, "The primary source of marine debris is the improper waste disposal or management of trash and manufacturing products, including plastics (e.g., littering, illegal dumping) ... Debris is generated on land at marinas, ports, rivers, harbors, docks, and storm drains. Debris is generated at sea from fishing vessels, stationary platforms, and cargo ships."[14] Pollutants range in size from abandoned fishing nets to micro-pellets used in cosmetics and abrasive cleaners.[15] Currents carry debris from the west coast of North America to the gyre in about six years,[6] and debris from the east coast of Asia in a year or less.[16][17]
Plankton While plankton are most abundant in surface waters, they live throughout the water column. At depths where no primary production occurs, zooplankton and bacterioplankton instead consume organic material sinking from more productive surface waters above. This flux of sinking material, so-called marine snow, can be especially high following the termination of spring blooms.