The researcher who discovered the Great Pacific Garbage Patch--and
remains one of today's key advocates for plastic pollution
awareness--inspires a fundamental rethinking of the modern Plastic
Age.
In 1997, environmentalist Charles Moore discovered the world's largest
collection of floating trash--the Great Pacific Garbage Patch
(GPGP)--while sailing from Hawaii to California. Moore was shocked by
the level of pollution that he saw. And in the last 20 years, it's only
gotten worse--a 2018 study has found that the vast dump of plastic waste
swirling in the Pacific Ocean is now bigger than France, Germany, and
Spain combined--far larger than previously feared.
In Plastic Ocean, Moore recounts his ominous findings and unveils the
secret life of plastics. From milk jugs and abandoned fishing gear to
polymer molecules small enough to penetrate human skin and be
unknowingly inhaled, plastic is now suspected of contributing to a host
of ailments, including infertility, autism, thyroid dysfunction, and
certain cancers. An urgent call to action, Plastic Ocean's sobering
revalations have been embraced by activists, concerned parents, and
anyone alarmed by the deadly impact and implications of this man-made
environmental catastrophe.