I’m sure you’ve heard about the Great Pacific Garbage Patch, an accumulation of trash twice the size of Texas, floating in the North Pacific Ocean between California and Japan, with Hawaii right in the middle.
The first time I learned of it, I thought it was an urban legend, along with alligators in New York City sewers. Humph, I snorted. Crazy environmentalists trying to get us to give up beloved disposable diapers, Styrofoam cups, plastic bags and every other convenience we’ve gotten used to.
Then I googled it and saw photos scarier than ‘The Blob.’
There are several of these debris gyres in oceans around the world, but since we’re here in the Pacific, let’s focus on ours.
It’s pupule to imagine giving up all throwaways (isn’t it?) so we need to determine what’s essential and what’s not.
For example, I haven’t yet gotten rid of my plastic toothbrush, but only because I don’t know how else to polish my pearly whites. Will a hala brush get in where food particles like to loiter? So I use dental floss but now I’m seeing dental floss picks everywhere.
Not a day goes by when I don’t stumble upon one of these small plastic tools, used for dental diligence then tossed out the car window. This simple device will eventually make its way to the Great Pacific Garbage Patch unless it gets ingested by an ahi and turns up on the sashimi platter.
I say we give up floss picks.
What about utensils? With our love of plate lunch, there’s a ton of plastic forks and spoons lurking about, but no need! Just keep real kine in the car.
There are many disposable objects to fret over, but here’s some good news: a young Dutchman invented a trap for the junk floating in the ocean. Now some bad news: the first time he tried it, it broke apart. More good news: he fixed it and is trying again. And because our determined scientist is only in his 20s, he is happily at the onset of a productive life-long obsession.
I’m always delighted to hear grand plans imagined and implemented by our youth. For many years, I taught young adults and cheered their optimism in making the world better. But old folks like me have a place in this fight too. Even if we forgo dental floss picks to poke our teeth with environmentally-correct wooden toothpicks, we can’t just sit on our fat ‘okole expecting the younger generation to change the world. While we makule might have tried, the fact that we’re still living the soft life means we didn’t try hard enough.
On the other hand, how many times have you seen someone walking along the roadside, picking up trash? Chances are, it’s a senior citizen (if not the crew from Kulani Prison), plucking one soda can and cigarette butt with long tongs and putting it in a recyclable bag. We old folks have time on our hands and this is one good way to spend it, rather than slowly going brain-dead by watching inane reality shows and insane survivor contests on television.
This is why the young and old must work together. Young people have grand visions and energy so we must encourage them. But weary ancients can still go out rain or shine to retrieve one tossed styrofoam cup, one plastic fork, one dental flossing pick in hopes that these do not end up in the Great Pacific Garbage Patch. Hands across the generations working to save the planet.
Sounds like a plan.
Rochelle delaCruz was born in Hilo, graduated from Hilo High School, then left to go to college. After teaching for 30 years in Seattle, Wash., she retired and returned home to Hawaii. She welcomes your comments at rainysideview@gmail.com. Her column appears every other Monday.