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1 1/3 YEAR AFTER THE MARCH 11, 2011 EARTHQUAKE-
TSUNAMI DISASTER IN JAPAN
THE PROBLEM CONTINUES TO GROW
Walter Hays, Global Alliance for Disaster Reduction, University of
North Carolina, USA
The March 11, 2011 tsunami swept as much debris into the ocean in one day as is usually dumped in a year
WHAT HAPPENED?
• Immediately after the tsunami waves dissipated, heavy items sank to the ocean floor close to shore, - - -.
• But, at least 1.5m tons of debris were carried off by currents and began making the 4,500-mile journey across the Pacific
WHAT HAPPENED?
• But, at least 1.5m tons of debris were carried off by currents and began making the 4,500-mile journey across the Pacific
WHAT HAPPENED?
• Within a month after the tsunami, the debris had dispersed and was stretched across 6666 nautical km (4,000 nautical miles) of the north Pacific.
NATURE OF THE TRASH
• The tsunami trash contains refrigerators, boats, houses, cars, trees, Harley Davidson motorcycles, golf clubs, and many kinds of debris.
• IT MAY also CONTAIN RADIOACTIVE MATERIALS, although not expected to constitute a significant risk.
THE PROBLEM
MORE THAN 20 MILLION TONS OF TRASH CREATED
BY THE MARCH 11, 2011 TSUNAMI ARE BEGINNING
TO REACH THE USA
LOCATION OF TRASH: MARCH 11, 2012
• About 3333 km (2,000 miles) south of Japan and 4333 km (2,600 miles) southwest of Cook Inlet, Alaska.
ALTHOUGH RADIATION AND DEAD
BODIES ARE NOT EXPECTED, THE TRASH REPRESENTS A
HUGE ENVIRONMENTAL PROBLEM,
FOR WHICH THERE IS LITTLE EXPERIENCE
ESTIMATED TIME OF ARRIVAL
• The floating trash is headed towards the beaches of Hawaii first in April, 2012, and then on to Alaska
• The trash is estimated to reach the Pacific Northwest states in 2014 and head back to the central Pacific
PREDICTIONS OF ARRIVAL
• Most of the debris is predicted to reach various parts of North America (Oregon, Washington, Canada, Alaska) in a trickle, not an avalanche, beginning in July 2012 and continuing into 2014.
MANY SCIENTISTS BELIEVE THE TRASH WILL
EVENTUALLY END UP IN “THE GREAT PACIFIC
GARBAGE PATCH” 1660 KM (1000 MILES) NORTH
OF HAWAII
THE GREAT PACIFIC GARBAGE PATH
• Discovered in 1997
• Contains millions of tons of the world’s trash kept in slow perpetual motion by rotating oceanic currents
• Hundreds of km (miles) across
• A DEAD ZONE FOR MARINE LIFE
• A threat to navigation and ecosystems
No one seems to know how the debris field will affect
fishing, a multi-billion dollar industry in the Pacific
Northwest.
THE TSUNAMI TRASH CHANGES CLEAN-UP PLANS
• 2009’s tentative plans to clean-up and recycle the trash in the Pacific Garbage Patch are on hold now, waiting for the tsunami trash to be added to the mix.
• Intense monitoring is planned to determine the levels of radioactivity in the trash and how they change over time.