Talk:Great Pacific Garbage Patch

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[edit] Split from North Pacific Gyre

I have split this article from North Pacific Gyre. See Talk:North Pacific Gyre for some discussion of this topic. -- Alan Liefting- (talk) - 22:53, 15 March 2008 (UTC)

I took a look at the discussion and I'm not clear why one small article was split into two smaller articles. Can you explain why the article was split? Thanks. —Viriditas | Talk 14:48, 27 March 2008 (UTC)
Well, it does seem like this one feature of the gyre is covered disproportionately, and both articles still have strong potential for growth. Seems fine to me to keep them separate, especially since this one will have a number of redirects and links on the garbage issue in particular. Perhaps this will free up the gyre article for more coverage of the oceanographic aspects. -- Beland (talk) 17:22, 27 March 2008 (UTC)
You are the third person to argue that the articles should remain separate. But, I sill don't see why they were split. Yes, you have given me a good what if scenario, explaining what you think they should become, but I edit articles based on what is and I still don't understand why a short article was split into two shorter articles. The redirect issue is easily solved using inline section redirects. I admit that maybe I am not "getting it", but this does a disservice to the reader, forcing them to visit two pages instead of one to read about related content. I think the problem is that we have three editors taking a specialist POV, which is great when it is required, but in this case, we need a generalist approach. Ideally, the articles should be split when the size passes a certain threshold, and even then, summary style would be appropriate. The current split seems to go about the process backwards. Small, related topics are more accessible in one location, not two. —Viriditas | Talk 07:58, 29 March 2008 (UTC)

I agree with the above in that while their might be a reason to split the articles in the future, due to the small size of each currently, they should remain together so as to provide the reader with the full gambit of information rather than forcing them to visit both pages. An earlier poster argued that there is a disproportionate amount of information on the garbage aspect, but that doesn't mean that the garbage isnt the most important/prevalent issue and therefor should be included with the main article. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 209.226.80.226 (talk) 21:02, 9 April 2008 (UTC)

I disagree with the proposal to merge, as the gyre and garbage patch are distinct subjects, and so the two articles should remain seperate. While the gyre article may short, the garbage patch one is not so. There is definitely capacity for expansion in both, as they are well studied phenomenon — Jack (talk) 01:00, 14 April 2008 (UTC)
  • I agree that this article deserves an individual entry, but I will merge North Pacific Gyre to the main Gyre article, since it is suffucuenbtly succinct that it can accommodate the information. It seems to have split to allow this article to expand. Now that it is separate, we can merge back. Agreed? Eusebeus (talk) 16:52, 21 May 2008 (UTC)
    • I think this sounds quite reasonable. -AndrewBuck (talk) 22:13, 22 May 2008 (UTC)

[edit] When and how was the Garbage Patch discovered?

The article needs a section on "history of human understanding", and a documentation of any significant academic study or research into the Garbage Patch. — Jack (talk) 03:43, 24 April 2008 (UTC)

[edit] Photograph

And yet, after all this time, and all these headlines there is not one single verifiable photograph of this alleged mass of waste that is twice the size of Texas...how is this piece of folklore encyclopedia material?

194.75.171.33 (talk) 11:13, 13 May 2008 (UTC)

You want a photo? So go there with a GOOD underwater camera, it's international waters. But this is not whole bottles or sneakers floating on the surface. It's small crumbs and chips drifting below the surface. But I think the article's assertion that taking a photo is "impossible" is too rash. It should be very hard, but possible if you have a bit of luck with the lighting.
And if you have ever travelled across this part of the world, you'd know that it is not exactly trivial to get there in the first place. There is nothing of interest in this region except for marine biologists and geoscientists. Just a large expanse of ocean, devoid of land (which is the main reason this phenomenon exists in the first place). It's too far off the beaten track even for fishermen, and the climate is technically too damn close to a freakin' desert (see Horse latitudes) for any sane person's comfort. Dysmorodrepanis (talk) 22:50, 28 May 2008 (UTC)

[edit] Cleanup Discussion Section

Random research notes:

  1. The origins of this seem to be the 2003 Nat Hist. article. The term was coined by Curtis Ebbesmeyer according to that article and it's size is his estimate.
  2. http://alguita.com/pdf/Density-of-Particles.pdf
  3. A quick review of the scientific literature suggests this is more commonly known as the Eastern Garbage Patch. We should perhaps move the article to that (current rd) page.
  4. Some cribbed refs of some potential value:
    1. Day, R.H., 1988. Quantitative distribution and characteristics of neustonic plastic in the North Pacific Ocean. Final Report to US Department of Commerce, National Marine Fisheries Service, Auke Bay Laboratory. Auke Bay, AK, 73 pp.
    2. Derraik, J.G.B., The pollution of the marine environment by plastic debris: a review. 2002, Marine Pollution Bulletin 44:842-852
    3. Assessing and Monitoring Floatable Debris, EPA-842-B-02-002, August 2002 Oceans and Coastal Protection Division (4504T) U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Washington, DC 20460
    4. Andrady, T.L., Plastics in Marine Environment, 2005 In: Proceedings of the Plastic Debris Rivers to Sea Conference, 2005
    5. Thompson, Richard C., et al, Lost at Sea: Where Is All the Plastic?, Science, Vol. 304, 2004, 843
    6. Moore, C.J., S.L. Moore, M. K. Leecaster, and S.B. Weisberg. 2001. A comparison of plastic and plankton in the North Pacific central gyre. Marine Pollution Bulletin 42:1297-1300.
    7. Moore, C.J., S.L. Moore, S.B. Weisberg, G. Lattin and A. Zellers. 2002. A comparison of neustonic plastic and zooplankton abundance in southern California’s coastal waters. Marine Pollution Bulletin 44:1035-1038.


Eusebeus (talk)