Pacific Garbage Patch - Take Action

The Pacific Garbage Patch has grown to be twice the size of Texas. Unless California does something about our plastic trash it will only get worse. That's why we're calling for simple steps to cut the waste that's fueling this enormous floating patch of trash.Every year, California uses 19 billion plastic bags -- many of which find their way out to sea and ultimately to the Pacific Garbage Patch. We're calling for a small fee on plastic bags at the grocery store, to encourage reusable bags. Join the call. Ask Gov. Schwarzenegger to put a fee on plastic bags. Environment California has launched a new effort -- The Great Pacific Cleanup -- to cut the waste that's ending up in the Pacific Ocean. Churned slowly by ocean currents, more than 100 million tons of plastic bags, bottles, toys, containers, packaging and other junk are swirling together, forming a moving island of trash off our coast that's known as the Pacific Garbage Patch.Approximately 80% of that waste came from land. Cleaning up the mess poses an enormous array of challenges, but a few things are dead-certain: To start the cleanup, we have to stop generating so much ocean-bound waste. And California can lead the way.Join with us in calling on the governor to encourage reusable bags by supporting a fee on plastic grocery bags. http://www.environmentcalifornia.org/action/oceans/bag-fee?id4=ESDan JacobsonEnvironment California Legislative Directorhttp://www.environmentcalifornia.org/P.S. If you haven't seen The New York Times editorial based on our report about how California and other states are leading the way in fighting global warming, it's worth reading.