Today, one of the most startling manifestations of waste is the vast accumulation of petroleum-plastic thought to be no longer useful enough to even be recycled. Our landfills and beaches are littered with plastic, a material designed to last forever yet used each day for products and packaging that have no value at the end of their short life cycle. In this episode of World Ocean Radio, host Peter Neill will discuss the seemingly endless life of this swirling, slowly dissolving petrol-detritus and will explain how the particulate matter enters the food chain and affects us all.

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Peter Neill, Director of the W2O and host of World Ocean Radio, provides coverage of a broad spectrum of ocean issues from science and education to advocacy and exemplary projects. World Ocean Radio, a project of the World Ocean Observatory, is a weekly series of five-minute audio essays available for syndicated use at no cost by community radio stations worldwide.

Image:  An Indonesian collecting plastic goods amidst a pile of rubbish.  Ciliwung River, Jakarta, Indonesia.

Credit: Ardiles Rante

Reference from this episode:
< 5Gyres
< Great Pacific Garbage Patch

Helpful Links/Drivers for Change:
< Plastic Pollution Coalition
< De-Mystifying the Great Pacific Garbage Patch | NOAA Marine Debris
< Advocacy for Clean Water | Plastic Pollution

Themes: