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I live on a peninsula and our beaches are covered in plastic. Over the last couple of years people litter pick most weekends, but to me it is hopeless. There is

I live on a peninsula and our beaches are covered in plastic. Over the last couple of years people litter pick most weekends, but to me it is hopeless. There is so much. You could spend ten thousand man hours a day cleaning and on the next tide the beach would be full again. Its just crazy how much crap there is in the ocean. Imagine how much plastic is in one garbage truck, now chop it up into small, 5cm bits. Now spread it across a beach, try to pick that up. It takes all day. We need machines to help us.

mikekchar 8y ago
I live near the beach in Japan. I admit that I don't go and pick up plastic off the beach. I definitely should because it's not really an onerous task. I'll try to schedule it occasionally (I mean, I'm near enough that I can actually walk to the beach, anytime I want). However, on the beach near me, there isn't much garbage. And pretty much any day I go, there is a group of students picking up garbage on the beach. When I used to work at the school, each home room would have beach days where they go and pick up garbage. And each club has beach days where they go and pick up garbage. I live on Suruga bay, so it's not right on the Pacific and I'm sure that cuts down a lot of the garbage. But just with the local high school sending 20 people down there practically every day, it seems to keep it under control. It's one of those cultural things. There is garbage everywhere because we don't have a culture to clean it up. We feel like we shouldn't have to. We feel like it should be someone else's job. Maybe that's true and maybe it's not, but a consistent effort by a small group of people can make a big difference.
thorin 8y ago
If you pick up all the plastic on the beach and put it into either general waste or plastic recycling bins, what percentage will actually end up back in the sea or in open landfill somewhere?
hokus 8y ago
modify some farming equipment. First separate sand from plastic by washing it then float it though a vibrating tank to sort it. What part of the technology belongs on the tractor will have to be figured out over time. If you separate it by type and size properly it can just be sold/recycled. While it could be commercially viable I do think money should be pumped in from other sources. Preferably from [remaining] industries creating and using the materials found.
- monk_e_boy 8y ago
  I'm not sure what sort of beach you are imagining, I assume a long sandy one. Ours are rocks, cliffs, deep bays, long sandy beaches that there is no way in hell they'd allow diggers or tractors on (conservation sites)

mikekchar 8y ago

I live near the beach in Japan. I admit that I don't go and pick up plastic off the beach. I definitely should because it's not really an onerous task. I'll try to schedule it occasionally (I mean, I'm near enough that I can actually walk to the beach, anytime I want). However, on the beach near me, there isn't much garbage. And pretty much any day I go, there is a group of students picking up garbage on the beach. When I used to work at the school, each home room would have beach days where they go and pick up garbage. And each club has beach days where they go and pick up garbage. I live on Suruga bay, so it's not right on the Pacific and I'm sure that cuts down a lot of the garbage. But just with the local high school sending 20 people down there practically every day, it seems to keep it under control. It's one of those cultural things. There is garbage everywhere because we don't have a culture to clean it up. We feel like we shouldn't have to. We feel like it should be someone else's job. Maybe that's true and maybe it's not, but a consistent effort by a small group of people can make a big difference.

thorin 8y ago

If you pick up all the plastic on the beach and put it into either general waste or plastic recycling bins, what percentage will actually end up back in the sea or in open landfill somewhere?

hokus 8y ago

modify some farming equipment. First separate sand from plastic by washing it then float it though a vibrating tank to sort it. What part of the technology belongs on the tractor will have to be figured out over time. If you separate it by type and size properly it can just be sold/recycled. While it could be commercially viable I do think money should be pumped in from other sources. Preferably from [remaining] industries creating and using the materials found.

monk_e_boy 8y ago
I'm not sure what sort of beach you are imagining, I assume a long sandy one. Ours are rocks, cliffs, deep bays, long sandy beaches that there is no way in hell they'd allow diggers or tractors on (conservation sites)