Download 1 1/3 year after the march 11, 2011 earthquake

1 1/3 YEAR AFTER
THE MARCH 11, 2011 EARTHQUAKETSUNAMI 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
TSUNAMI TRASH DUMP IN JAPAN:
MARCH 11, 2012
TRASH FROM MARCH 11, 2011 JAPANESE
TSUNAMI: (US NAVY PHOTO)
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
INITIAL PATH OF TSUNAMI
TRASH
TSUNAMI DEBRIS REACHING
HAWAII
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.
ONE YEAR LATER
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.
SIZE OF FLOATING TRASH
• More than three times
the size of the contiguous
United States.
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
INITIAL CONSIDERATIONS
THE USA IS NOT PREPARED
TO DEAL WITH THIS PROBLEM
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.
A 70 FT FLOATING DOCK REACHES
OREGON: JUNE 6
SOME TSUNAMI TRASH REACHES
BRITISH COLUMBIA: JULY 12
SOME TSUNAMI TRASH REACHES
BRITISH COLUMBIA: JULY 12
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.
No one seems to know how
much it will cost to clean up
the Garbage Patch, especially
now.