Eli5 How is so much trash getting in the ocean?
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For a long time, countries like the US have been selling their plastic waste to countries in Asia, mainly China, for recycling. Plastics recycling is a very costly process with a very small profit margin. It gets shipped across the Pacific and often gets dumped in the ocean on the way, whether accidentally or on purpose. China stopped accepting foreign plastic for recycling a few years ago, so I couldn’t say how much this still happens. But all ecosystem services are connected and everything eventually finds its way to the ocean with time, no matter where you dispose of it.
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