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Plastic Pollution in the Oceans: A Global Crisis

In Plastic Pollution in the Oceans: A Growing Crisis, host Simon Reeve encounters the devastating effects of the plastic trash that is overwhelming islands like the Maldives and Hawaii. This video is excerpted from BBC's Incredible Journeys With Simon Reeve, a series that highlights one journalist’s travels across the globe and the diverse cultures and peoples he meets along the way.
Advisory: Contains language which some may find offensive.
Video Details
Location:
Maldives and Hawaii
Grades:
6-89-12
Program:
Incredible Journeys With Simon Reeve
Time:
5:33
Subject:
Science
Topic:
Environmental Science

Lesson Express

Q: Name the benefits and drawbacks to tourism in the Maldives.
A: The money from tourists can go toward conservation, but tourists also create a lot more waste that eventually gets dumped onto a fly-infested island.

Q: How is the beach in Hawaii transforming?
A: The plastic debris that washes up on the beaches can not biodegrade. The pieces of plastic break down into tiny pieces of plastic, but they never disappear. The plastic pieces are becoming part of the beach itself, like grains of sand.

Q: With so much plastic debris just collecting on beaches and in the oceans, why do you think people continue to use it?
A: Student responses will vary. Plastics are useful for transporting and storing items. It is cheap to make. Many people use plastics so often they don’t realize how much they are using. Garbage dumps and plastic debris are often not front and center in many people’s neighborhoods.

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