Shyanna Takacs, North Olympic Peninsula Skills Center Natural Resources

1. Trash on the Washington Coast, 2009-2012 Shyanna Takacs, North Olympic Peninsula Skills Center Natural Resources Prior Knowledge Marine debris is one of the most widespread pollution problems our world faces. Marine debris is a variety of things that are man-made and have set adrift on our oceans and waterways; one-billion pounds of debris is collected a year. The impact is not only on the surface of our ocean it is also seen 300 meters below sea level, these items have become habitat for wildlife in our ecosystem. There are trash items that have grown into animals and will not be able to be removed unless very carefully or in a way that would harm the animal. It has also became a deadly diet for these animals. Marine debris is a huge pollutant and a death trap in our ecosystem. Observations When I was at the Dungeness Spit with Natural Resources 1 class in May, 2012, we did a beach clean-up and we saw and picked up a lot of marine debris. On the beach was plastic debris, rope, and even an oil can that was left behind and spilled on the beach. All of these items can be and are harmful to animal habitats and our local ecosystems. Question How has the amount of Marine Debris (pounds and items collected during April coastal clean-up) changed on the Western Olympic Peninsula in the past four years? • Hypothesis • I believe that each year, assuming collection is done in the same spot, will be the same or more items and pounds collected per year. The reason why I think this is because there has not been a significant impact on getting humans to reduce, decrease, or clean up trash; if anything, every year I think it is getting worse especially when our population is growing. • Materials • • Trash Bag(s) • • Gloves • • Data Sheet • • Pen, Pencil • Sunscreen • Procedure • 1. Walk along Beach • 2. Collect All Trash Sighted (Plastic, Paper, Cans, Rope, Etc..) • 3. Put All Trash in Trash Bags • 4. Go to Computer • 5. Take All Data from Data Sheet and Upload onto Computer • 6. Calculate Amounts of Debris • 7. Put into Graph • 8. Present to Natural Resource Workers Natural Resources Students Troy Nicolaysen, Shyanna Takacs and Andrew Colvin Picking up Trash on the Dungeness Spit Results Students take a break half-way Conclusion I believed that each year depending on if they were done in the same location or not the amount collected each year would be the same or it is going to rise. My hypothesis was supported for the weight.It is not rising by a lot but every year it has raised in the amount collected. In 2009 there were 6,155 pounds and 14,073 items collected by 188 people; in 2010 there were 10,246 pounds and 20,946 items collected by 274 volunteers, in 2011 there were 8,513 pounds and 15,949 items collected by 158 volunteers; and in 2012 there were 8,216.5 pounds and 12,021 items collected by 275 volunteers. It seems to me that 2010 is highest for pounds collected because there were basically the most people at 274, and they traveled the most distance to clean 128.6 miles. In 2009, people traveled 78.8, in 2011 people traveled 67.1 and in 2012 people traveled 82.3. You can see the pattern for the distance traveled and amount collected, where amounts basically increase with distance. My new question is how could we start to attract more volunteers to help each year? For the most part, the more people the more we collect which means less trash on our land. Analysis The overall pattern/trend for the data we collected is that both weight and items collected each year mirror each other. In 2009 they were close to the same and in 2010 there was a big jump for both but then they both start to decrease in the next two years. For the items and pounds per mile you can see there was a jump in 2011 versus the jump in 2010 for overall amount collected. Acknowledgements I would like to give a big thank you to the volunteers that surveyed and gathered trash and marine debris data for my and future students’ inquiries.