The sea is all connected. External factors such as wind over the sea and internal factors such as seawater density are added to create a path of water in the sea, and continents and islands meet along the current, which is the path of water. Continents and continents, islands and islands are connected through the sea.
The current affecting Korea is generally the Kuroshio Current, which moves north along the east coast of China. The Kuroshio Current passes through Jeju and is divided into Tsushima Turbulent and Yellow Sea Turbulent. In addition, the Riemann Current moves south from the north, creating a path for water to the Korean Peninsula. In addition, as the Siberian high pressure expands, the flow of the sea may also follow the direction of the wind in winter when the northwest wind blows.
This sea flow brings a lot to Jeju Island. Although the flow of ocean currents affects the ecosystem of the sea and makes marine resources more abundant, garbage flowing along the ocean currents has recently become a problem.
Deepda Jeju, an environmental group that continues to collect marine waste in Jeju Island, recently collected a number of unknown plastic pipes during the garbage collection process on the coast of Hagwi 1-ri, Aewol-eup. Even if they estimated the pipes they collected, they looked about 100.
On the other hand, the identity of the pipe was speculated to be used in oyster farming in Hiroshima, Japan. In Hiroshima, Japan, oyster farming is carried out by inserting the shells of scallops with oyster seedlings in a relatively thin plastic pipe and hanging them from a raft to raise them in the sea.
In the process, it is reported that plastic pipes with scalloped shells are frequently lost to the sea. In 2019, it was reported that a massive loss of plastic pipes occurred in Hiroshima, causing a problem in Japan. Some point out that such loss of plastic five has been a problem for more than 20 years.
Byun Byung-bin, CEO of Deepda Jeju, said, "The ocean current usually flows from the Chinese side, and given that such a large amount of pipes are found off the coast of Jeju, the number of pipes being lost is expected to be significant."
Some say that these plastic pipes may be used differently from those used for oyster farming in Hiroshima, but in general, the prevailing opinion is that "they appear to be materials used in aquaculture."
Marine waste washed up on the coast of Hagwi 1-ri, Aewol-eup. / Photo = Deep Jeju.
This is not the only waste believed to be coming from abroad through the sea. Last summer, thousands of blue net buoys, believed to have flowed from China, centered on the southern coast of Jeju Island. At that time, Deepda Jeju collected more than 1,300 buoys a day at Hwasun Beach in Andeok-myeon, Seogwipo-si.
Dozens to hundreds of these buoys are commonly used in a single net, and if one such net is thrown away, it corrodes the sea, causing the buoys to start to fall off the net, creating hundreds of small trash. Trash made like this floats on the sea. It is washed up on the coast of Jeju along the current.
In addition, pet bottles with Chinese characters and Japanese characters are frequently found on the coast of Jeju. A considerable amount of foreign waste is being washed to Jeju through the sea connecting the continents and islands.
As such, it is difficult to block garbage washed to Jeju in advance.
In general, a considerable amount of marine waste is washed to the southern coast in summer when the southwest wind blows, and to the northern coast in winter when the northwest wind blows. It seems that garbage is being washed to a specific place at a certain time.
However, in the case of a large amount of hwengsaengma and a half that flood the coast of Jeju at a certain time, the amount collected at sea is considerable, while there is no prior collection of waste at sea.
While it is not difficult to monitor and collect because it is washed into large chunks, marine waste is not easy to monitor or collect in advance because it is scattered even if the amount is large. After all, there is no suitable solution other than to collect the garbage that has been washed to the coast.
For this reason, the importance of inducing changes in perception through methods such as education is increasing so that the waste discharged itself can be reduced.
In addition, just as garbage from other countries is being washed up on Jeju Island, the need to reduce garbage from daily life is being emphasized with the idea that numerous trash discarded in Korea can also be washed away to other countries.
"There are a lot of trash from overseas, but it is upsetting to think that the trash we throw away will also be dirtying other countries' seas," said Byun Soo-bin, CEO of Deepda Jeju. "Especially considering that Korea's plastic consumption is the world's No. 1 level, it is possible to expect Korea's trash to be washed into other countries' seas."
He added, "Since the sea is connected as one, it is more important than anything else to recognize that the trash we throw away comes back and reduce it from our daily lives."
Writer: Yeyoung Jeon
(Picture from Unsplash)
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