- Valley View News
Beach Cleanness: Doing Your Part
By Nicole San Juan
REDONDO, CA - If you enjoy going to the beach, then you might have to think twice about littering trash. Californian beaches are not only being littered, but affected by one single piece of trash.
Photo Credit: Nicole San Juan, Trash on the Beach
In L.A County alone approximately 28 tons of garbage are dumped into landfills each year. But, it’s not just a problem in L.A but in the entire world.
Brenda Arriaza was an environmentalist.
“Keep the oceans clean is to reduce your single-use plastic not just when you’re at the beach but in general because eventually ends up in the trashcan and the landfill which ends up in the ocean,” said Arriaza.
According to National Geographic, 5.25 trillion pieces of plastic swim in the ocean and 269,000 tons of that float on the top surface, while four billion are deeper in the ocean.
“Picking up trash really takes two seconds and people underestimate the power that they can have as individuals because even if everyone around the world picked up trash that is seven billion pieces of trash are no longer polluting the environment,” said Sharona Shnayder, a Climate Activist.
There are plastic bottles and cans but another problem is ocean acidification. It's when a change in the properties of ocean water is harmful to plants and animals.
“There’s a lot of pollution happening it’s not just plastic there’s a lot of ocean acidification different things that are affecting these ecosystems are very very fragile,” said Shnayder.
It’s essential to keep our oceans clean for marine life and for human life too. Ocean pollution is affecting our seafood which is serious contamination. “The ocean is not safe for the fish, the fish that we’re eating is not good for us,” said Arriaza.
According to a Pew article, if ocean pollution isn't reduced by 2040, marine life, ecosystems, climate, and communities will worsen.
Nicole San Juan reports
By Nicole San Juan
Contributions: National Geographic, Patch, Pew Charitable Trusts
Photo: Nicole San Juan
Video: Nicole San Juan
EDUCATE YOURSELF