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Navigate:VIRTUAL EXPLORATIONS > ARCHIVED EXPLORATIONS > CREEP INTO THE DEEP 2015
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Part 7: Let's Not Trash the DeepGuest Contributor: Dr. Tammy Frank, Chief Scientist and Deep-sea Explorer
Posted July 23, 2015: We’ve seen so many exotic and amazing creatures it makes me smile just thinking about them. As you know, the deep is a very important home to so many mysterious and marvelous animals. |
Some moments my smile fades. At the deepest depths, we keep seeing trash. Even as far down as 6,562 feet (2,000 m) down, human garbage mars the beauty.
At this deepest habitat, where there’s so little structure, some of the animals are colonizing this trash, but as you can see with the anemone that wrapped in the plastic, its growth is being warped. We saw fishing line, soda cans, trash bags, and even a big oil barrel.
Now that you’ve helped us explore the deep, you have an important job. Help us keep it clean.
Many people do not realize that everything they do on land affects the deep — from not properly disposing of trash to not monitoring invisible pollutants such as chemicals from our detergents, fertilizers, cars, and other products we use all the time.
How can you help? It’s easy to make a difference. Reduce, reuse, and recycle. Be aware of the products you use that might run from your home, lawn, or driveway into storm drains an into streams and rivers. It all makes it to the ocean.
At this deepest habitat, where there’s so little structure, some of the animals are colonizing this trash, but as you can see with the anemone that wrapped in the plastic, its growth is being warped. We saw fishing line, soda cans, trash bags, and even a big oil barrel.
Now that you’ve helped us explore the deep, you have an important job. Help us keep it clean.
Many people do not realize that everything they do on land affects the deep — from not properly disposing of trash to not monitoring invisible pollutants such as chemicals from our detergents, fertilizers, cars, and other products we use all the time.
How can you help? It’s easy to make a difference. Reduce, reuse, and recycle. Be aware of the products you use that might run from your home, lawn, or driveway into storm drains an into streams and rivers. It all makes it to the ocean.
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