Taiwan produces far more seabed trash than the global average. What is the most common source of this garbage on the ocean floor around Taiwan? And how many divers and volunteers are helping to clean it up?
According to a survey by oceanographers, the density of trash on the ocean floor around Taiwan is 1.5 times higher than the global average. Trash found has included large fishnets, animal feed bags, plastic bags, and plastic packaging. They contaminate the water, and the toxins they contain could also end up in our stomachs when we consume fish caught in these polluted zones.
About 4,000 volunteers are working to clean up Taiwan’s waters, and about 400 divers are diving to the sea floor off Taiwan’s coasts to remove any garbage they find there. So far this year, the cleanup team has collected 302 tons of garbage, while the divers have hauled up 7,350 kilograms of seabed trash. Most of the waste was found off Hualien on the east coast and Changhua on the west coast.
Where is all of this trash coming from anyway? It turns out that campers who do not clean up after themselves are the most common source. The Ocean Conservation Administration is warning campers to take their garbage with them. It is also encouraging more volunteers to help with cleaning up Taiwan’s waters.