Also known as the Pacific Garbage Vortex, this collection of discarded debris is mostly composed of plastic materials swirling around in the North Pacific Ocean.

The "patch" is actually collected into two main islands: the Western Garbage Patch near Japan and the Eastern Garbage Patch found between Hawaii and California.

These floating trash islands are collected by the North Pacific Subtropical Gyre (a system of currents resulting from the Earth’s wind patterns and rotation) and can range from double the size of Texas to the entire continental United States. Unfortunately, the size of the patches continues to expand because the majority of the garbage is not biodegradable and merely breaks into smaller pieces.

Because of its overwhelming presence, animals and marine life are beginning to suffer premature death. The Laysan Albatross, one of the largest sea birds on the planet, migrate each year back to Midway Atoll, directly in the center of the currents. During their time on the island, parents raise their young surrounded by garbage and feed them plastic. The small bits of hard plastics such as pen caps and bottle caps become ensnared in their stomachs by nylon fishing nets and other debris, which is either trapped in their stomachs permanently or is regurgitated and fed to the chicks. According to the US Fish and Wildlife Service, it is a very common sight when examining a bird’s stomach contents.

Fish are feeding on the smaller plastic bits, broken down over decades but not quite disappearing. Once eaten, the garbage remains in the fish until it dies or is caught for consumption. Fish on the market, including mahi-mahi and tuna, are also consuming these bits, and the fear is that we could unintentionally be ingesting fragments as they make their way up the food chain.

Recycling alone is not enough to eliminate the plastic that already exists in the oceans; however, it is beneficial. Think about it — humans have created a material that is indestructible and lasts forever, yet we use it for an incredibly short amount of time. So far, there have been no successful theories from any country globally on how to extract the garbage and plastic materials, including the microscopic fragments. There is one idea on how to prevent its growth however, and that is stopping the trash at the source.

Did you know: 1 million plastic bags are used every minute? Grocery bags we don’t think twice about using to carry prepackaged materials are contributing to the ever-swelling trash vortex. 85 million plastic bottles are used every minute, so by the time you finish reading this article, that’s upwards of 170 million bottles. Become aware of what you constantly purchase — can it be substituted? Avoid overly packaged materials, buy locally and reduce the amount of disposable plastic you use on a daily basis. For example, bring reusable grocery bags to the store next time you shop,=or consider getting yourself a thermos for your morning coffee or tea. Consumers have an enormously weighted say in what corporations manufacture.

Now we just have to hold them to it.