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Banned Chemicals From 1970's Persist In Deepest Reaches of the Pacific Ocean, Study Shows (bbc.com)
walterbyrd quotes a report from BBC: Scientists were surprised by the relatively high concentrations of pollutants like PCBs and PBDEs in deep sea ecosystems. Used widely during much of the 20th Century, these chemicals were later found to be toxic and to build up in the environment. The results are published in the journal Nature Ecology and Evolution. The team led by Dr Alan Jamieson at the University of Newcastle sampled levels of pollutants in the fatty tissue of amphipods (a type of crustacean) from deep below the Pacific Ocean surface. The pollutants found in the amphipods included polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs), which were commonly used as electrical insulators and flame retardants. PCB production was banned by the U.S. in 1979 and by the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants, a UN treaty signed in 2001. From the 1930s to when PCBs were banned in the 1970s, the total global production of these chemicals is estimated to be in the region of 1.3 million tons. Released into the environment through industrial accidents and discharges from landfills, these pollutants are resistant to being broken down naturally, and so persist in the environment. The authors of the study say that the deep ocean can become a "sink" or repository for pollutants. They argue that the chemicals accumulate through the food chain so that when they reach the deep ocean, concentrations are many times higher than in surface waters.
MH370
From the second link in the summary, to the scientific paper: dw = "dry weight".
If it weren't for deadlines, nothing would be late.
The ocean is pretty big though.
Bioconcentration is the reason why dilution is not the pollution solution.
"You're right," Fisheye says. "I should have set it on 'whip' or 'chop.'"
If you aren't part of the solution, you are part of the precipitate.
Many PCBs are stable in cold and dark conditions and need to be broken down by sunlight or the right kind of microorganisms. Without sunlight to break the chemicals down they are bound to persist for many decades and possibly centuries. In soil there are microorganisms that can break down PCBs, but they don't exist in the deep ocean (that I'm aware of).
I suspect the concentrations to only increase over time, as rivers and lakes eventually get stable material from the bottom dredged from floods, construction or even drought. Resulting in more contaminates flooring into the ocean.
Look, chemistry is a very powerful thing in nature. And we carry a huge burden of responsibility for the planet when we produce different chemical compounds on an industrial scale. There's nothing wrong with science and technology that can't be fixed with a little cautious restraint in how it is applied.
"In all of your deliberations in the Confederate Council, in your efforts at law making, in all your official acts, self interest shall be cast into oblivion. Cast not over your shoulder behind you the warnings of the nephews and nieces should they chide you for any error or wrong you may do, but return to the way of the Great Law which is just and right. Look and listen for the welfare of the whole people and have always in view not only the present but also the coming generations, even those whose faces are yet beneath the surface of the ground -- the unborn of the future Nation." -- The Constitution of the Iroquois Nation (The Great Binding Law)
“Common sense is not so common.” — Voltaire
This might blow your mind, but the fish I and other normal people eat doesn't come from the fucking Mariana trench.
I do not want your cheap brainburning drugs. They are useless for work. And I am a working man today.
No, what it means is that a team will be created at the UN from multiple countries including the worst polluters. This team will decide that the only way to resolve this issue is to create a global tax on something that everyone needs and first world countries will be required to give billions to third world countries. This money will not be tracked and will be used for everything except what the original purpose was.
I know it sounds like I'm bashing the UN because I'm a hater but seriously that seems like what will happen and nothing will truly occur to resolve the issue. I wish I was wrong but I know I'm not.
-GeekPoet