| Myth | Reality |
| Most trash on the beach is due to offshore dumping |
BUSTED!
Almost all the trash on the beach starts as litter on the beach. The largest volume is fishing line, and there are more individual cigarette butts than anything else. See my Us Vs Them webpage. |
| Trash breaks down in the ocean, doesn't it? |
BUSTED!
This trash sorting activity helps kids understand the lifetimes of marine debris. If Geoffrey Chaucer had left fishing line in the ocean, it would still be here today.
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| There's an island of trash as large as Texas in the ocean |
PLAUSIBLE
- There is a vast amount of plastic debris in the ocean, covering an area larger than Texas. It is a serious problem. But it's not as dense as we imagine, and not an island.
See videos by Jean Michel Cousteau and Five Gyres. |
| The main human impact on the ocean is pollution |
BUSTED!
A number of different human impacts are included in my Save the Ocean Game Habitat loss, overfishing, ocean acidification .. the list goes on. |
| Most oil in the ocean is due to spills |
BUSTED!
Most oil comes from underwater seeps and runoff from land. See Us Vs Them |
| Oil spills are easy to clean up. |
BUSTED!
I added a map of the Gulf of Mexico to a self contained oil spill kit. |
| Melting of the Arctic Sea Ice causes sea level rise |
BUSTED!
Arctic ice is already in the ocean. This lesson plan and cut-and-paste worksheet should help.
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| Mile for mile, electric cars have a lower carbon footprint than traditional cars. |
PLAUSIBLE
- it depends on where you live and changing technology.
Printable discussion of electric cars |
| Toilets fluch backwards in Australia |
BUSTED!
The world is much larger than your toilet; check out Bad Coriolis and Scientific American .
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| If we just .... |
Does it make a big difference? |
| Small things add up and big things are good. |
BUSTED!
What matters is how big the changes are relative to the normal state. Some thoughts on Small Things |
| turn off lights and/or use fluorescent bulbs |
BUSTED! Most of our home energy budget goes to heating |
| turn off the water while brushing our teeth |
BUSTED! Most of our home water use goes on lawns |
| put everthing plastic in the recycle bin |
BUSTED! Most types of plastic aren't recyclable in most towns. Recycling Plastic |
| get a reusable shopping bag |
PLAUSIBLE
if you remember to use it |
| stop drinking bottled water |
CONFIRMED! See The story of bottled water
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| drive 5-10 MPH slower |
PLAUSIBLE
but driving less is better |
| use cloth diapers instead of disposable |
BUSTED! - unless you hand was your diapers in cold water, with no bleach and line dry. |
| become a vegetarian |
PLAUSIBLE Eat low on the food chain, eat healthy - sounds pretty good.
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