Local Biz Owner Urges Families to Say 'No' to Plastic

In the middle of the Pacific Ocean, somewhere between California and Hawaii, lies a great big hulking mass of plastic, chemical sludge and debris that have been trapped by marine currents. It's the Great Pacific Garbage Patch, a giant gyre of litter that’s roughly the size of Texas.

In it is everything from plastic water bottles, toys, shoes, fishing nets and debris from cruise ships, 3.5 million tons of trash bound together in one giant floating mass that hovers just under water and is invisible from the plane.

Now one local business owner is urging families to rethink their relationship with plastic and is holding a contest to wean people off every day plastic products. Michael "Bug" Deakin, 61, owns  and is looking for families for his Plastic is Drastic Contest.

It works like this: families save all their plastic for three weeks to understand just how much plastic the average person consumes. In the second week of the contest, participants receive water filtration systems, stainless steel bottles and advice from Deakin, about ways to reduce plastic consumption.

“This is so important,” Deakin says. “Four fifths of our world is made of water…But it’s not the planet that needs saving, it’s humanity.”

Finally, in week four, participants will gather on KRUSH radio to discuss how they were able to reduce their plastic usage and hopefully become more eco-aware.

“I’ve seen the havoc plastic wreaks on our ocean,” says Deakin, an avid boater and fisherman. “I’ve been out in the deep ocean and seen the damage plastic causes.”

The problem with plastic is that it never fully biodegrades, but instead ends up directly in landfills. In the water, it eventually disintegrates into tiny pieces that are ingested by microorganisms  and passes into the food chain when they, in turn, are eaten by fish.

Click here for more information about the contest and how to sign up.