Environmental News
‘Maiden’ Departs, Greta Thunberg Arrives
Maiden Sails Out the Gate for L.A.
A crowd of well-wishers gathered this morning to bid farewell to Maiden and her crew as they departed for the next leg of their world tour. More »
The Tower and the Rower
Sailors are probably accustomed to seeing a boat under tow — it happens. But if you were sailing on the Bay on Saturday afternoon, you might have seen the curious sight of a sailboat towing a rowboat. More »
The Plastic Plague, Part 3
“When you think of recycling, you probably think of a magical process where you throw your plastic in the blue bin, and a unicorn takes it away, and nine months later you get a beautiful baby water bottle.” More »
Are You Headed to the Pacific Garbage Patch?
Alex Bellini, a self-described adventurer, speaker and mental coach, is looking for a ride to the Pacific gyre, and he’s willing to pay his way.
Bellini’s ultimate goal is to “travel to the world’s 10 most plastic polluted rivers on a hand-made, floating vessel made out of local recycled materials,” and to “row solo across the Pacific Garbage Patch, the largest accumulation of plastic in the world.” More »
The Plastic Plague, Part 1
In era of deeply polarized opinions over basic environmental truths, there’s one area of overwhelming consensus: People are unanimously appalled by plastic in the ocean. “In the last year, there’s been unprecedented media coverage and an increase in awareness in the challenge associated with plastic,” said a spokesperson for a major Bay Area recycling facility. More »
Fishing Nets from the Pacific Gyre
The North Pacific Subtropical Convergence Zone, often referred to as the Pacific Gyre, consists of a sea of floating plastic material — various bottles, plastic chairs, packaging straps, buckets, rope and fishing nets. Several efforts have been undertaken recently to try and rid the Pacific Ocean of this debris.
Barry’s Baleen Will Scour the Sea
Barry Spanier has his sights set on one of the most pressing environmental issues of our time: plastics in the ocean. Spanier conceived of a boat called the "Baleen" (also known as Ships that Scour the Sea), named after filter-feeder whales.
Ocean Cleanup, Randall Reeves, Lia Ditton
A Setback for the Ocean Cleanup
After steaming out of the Bay in late September with the ambition of cleaning up the Great Pacific Garbage Patch, the Ocean Cleanup project has suffered a major setback and is heading back to Alameda. “Due More »
Cleaning Up the Coast and Beyond
The Ocean Cleanup’s System 001 left San Francisco Bay on Saturday.
© John D. Henry
The Ocean Cleanup Project, which we’ve covered in the past in Latitude 38, was deployed on Saturday. More »
Kudos
While we seek results we applaud progress. Even with our best intentions and awareness of things like the Texas-sized Pacific garbage patch it remains hard to eliminate our single-use plastic water bottle habit. More »
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