Our oceans as plastic soup

Last Tuesday, June 8, was World Oceans Day 2015; a day when extra attention is paid to the well-being of our oceans. Unfortunately, this is much needed. Our oceans are heavily polluted by, among other things, all the plastic that ends up in them, known as the plastic soup.

Because plastic does not decompose by biological means, it disintegrates into small particles, which marine animals mistake for food. Many marine animals die from it. Birds that eat the fish die in turn from all the plastic particles. We too ingest the toxins in this way.

Fortunately, we are becoming increasingly aware of this problem, so change can be initiated. How? Some examples:

Boyan Slat has an ambitious plan to clean our oceans of plastic: The Ocean Cleanup.

In 2011, Slat, then only 16 years old, went diving in Greece, only to conclude disappointed that he had encountered more plastic than fish. He went to study at TU Delft and delved further into the issue. This eventually resulted in a design, in which a kind of enormous safety net with a V-shape is lowered into the ocean.

The current will cause the plastic to flow towards the net, the V-shape serves as a trap, eventually the plastic will concentrate in the tip, to be cleaned up from there. It is worth watching the video, in which he himself explains his plan.

It's ambitious, but dreaming big also creates great things.

On the other hand, of course, there is prevention. Making sure no more plastic ends up in the oceans. This is what Tulper is working on in collaboration with the Plastic Soup Foundation. Tulper is a start-up with a mission and an ambition. In the first place, the goal is to offer products as an alternative to plastic. Sustainable products that is. Think of stainless steel water bottles and bags and ponchos that are partly made of PET bottles. They are so beautifully designed and clever that you no longer want to throw them away. The poncho, for example, is waterproof on the outside, of course, but the inside has a soft lining that doubles as a picnic blanket. In collaboration with designers and students, beautiful designs for the water bottles are being created as we speak. It's a first, these photos of the first prototypes:

Design and photography Lysanne Westra Graphic Design.

Secondly, there is the ambition to manufacture products with the junk that has come from the sea. At the moment, it is not easy to get plastic from the oceans, but if Slat's plan is implemented, in a few years this need not be a problem.

Textile designer Nienke Hoogvliet's projects Sea Me and Re-Sea Me aim to draw attention to the contrast between polluting plastic problems and the beautiful, sustainable materials the sea has to offer. Sea Me is a hand-knotted carpet, the yarn is made from seaweed, knotted on an old fishing net. This yarn from seaweed offers the textile industry a sustainable new alternative, it grows much faster and needs less nutrients than cotton.

As a follow-up, Re-Sea Me was born. Fish skins are a waste product from the fishing industry. In the hands of Hoogvliet, however, this is converted into high-quality leather. The skins are tanned into leather without the use of chemicals, using traditional methods. A process that requires a lot of handwork. In cooperation with Textielmuseum Tilburg, the application possibilities are further investigated.

I am convinced; the oceans are beautiful and have a lot to offer us, but they also need us very much. Let's make sure that photos like this one are no longer needed, turtle Peanut got stuck in a six-pack as a baby, the poor animal couldn't get out, see the result here.

Fortunately, there is a lot of positive stuff happening at the moment; and awareness = change. More info or want to know what you can do yourself?