Every second breath we take we receive from our oceans.
According to UNEP, every square mile of ocean hosts 46,000 pieces of floating plastic.
It’s estimated that 3.5 million pieces of plastic enter our oceans daily on the global scale.
Plastic in the ocean significantly threatens marine life, water quality, navigational safety, and the sustainability of our global food supply chain.
Globally, 10% of meat protein comes from fish – fish feed the world.
Because fish ingest plastics, it is a national food security & health challenge, especially when we predict a population of 10 billion people on the planet by 2050.
Why:
Plastics adsorb persistent organic pollutants/chemicals that potentially migrate up the human food supply chain.
Plastic in our oceans is a national food security challenge, and we believe we can turn this challenge on its head and create sustainable businesses while providing jobs.
50% of the chemicals used in plastics are toxic (UN Globally Harmonized System of Classification & Labeling).
Marine life becomes entangled and trapped in the debris, which can prove fatal.
Plastics plague nursery habitats of marine life, leach chemicals into the ocean, smother the benthic floor prohibiting vegetation growth, and disrupt our oceans eco-systems.
Costly propellers and motor uptakes are damaged impacting recreation, business commerce and national security (Carnival Cruise Lines, February 14, 2013).
Value of ocean front real estate is negatively affected and debris cleanup efforts are costly.
Bottom-line: Because your kids, your grandkids, and their grandkids depend on us to face the challenge and provide the solution through collective innovation.