‘Ocean hero’

I want everyone to know about a great opportunity to hear one of our ocean heroes, Captain Charles Moore, from Los Angeles, speak at the student center in UNC, Wilmington, 8 p.m.. Thursday,  Jan. 14.

Captain Moore was the person who accidentally found the huge plastic island of trash in the Pacific Ocean 1996.  The garbage patch is 1,000 miles from any coast and is about  twice the size of Texas, and growing larger every day.

Captain Moore subsequently founded the Algalita Marine Research Foundation to research the damage created by plastic in our oceans.

  Our oceans are now polluted with all things plastic including bags, plastic bottles, cigarette lighters, children’s toys, discarded fishing nets and much more.

Most of this trash is carried down rivers and storm drains, and from items abandoned on beaches and caught by ocean currents which carry the plastic out to the garbage patch.

After many trips back to the ‘gyre’ and much research, it is now estimated that parts of the ocean contain six times more plastic than plankton!

 In terms of human health risks, evidence is growing that chemicals leached from plastics are harmful; these are hormone disrupters, which can stimulate the growth of cancer cells by entering our food chain via ocean fish.

When I first read about Captain Moore and the work that he is doing, it changed my view of the ocean and how we humans are helping to destroy the very thing on which we are dependent for 70 percent of our oxygen.

 Plastic is also responsible for the loss of approximately 1,000,000 sea birds per year and over 100,000 ocean creatures.

 Marine life mistake plastic for jellyfish and ingest it with disastrous results.

If it is possible, I encourage you to attend Captain’s Moore’s lecture and learn more about this ocean hero and the work that he is doing to help prevent our oceans from total destruction.

Admission to the Jan. 14 presentation is free, although donations to Algalita would be accepted.

For more information, please call: 235-1236,  

Goffinet McLaren

Pawleys Island