Term Paper on "Oceans & Plastic Pollution the Growing Mass"

Quoted Instructions for "Oceans and Plastic Pollution the Growing Mass" Assignment:

Instructions

MPP Part 2: Research Document (40 points)

Research and write a concisely written 3-4 page paper on your chosen issue. The research paper should include at least 4 primary sources that are properly cited using scientific citing formats, both in the text and in a bibliography.

See: http://library.osu.edu/sites/guides/csegd.php#booksone for formats.

This paper does not have to be written as an argument, but could be. It should have all the support information, and documentation for the â€A"appeal” you will be writing in Part 4.

See: Examples of Successful MPP Submissions

For Grading Part 2: The paper should be typed, not longer than 4 pages, double-spaced, with at least one inch margins, and will be submitted electronically. Proper citing of references using scientific citing formats is critical.

A few comments on primary sources:

Primary sources of scientific information are books, papers, videos, podcasts, and articles that have been through the rigorous process of review by experts in the field. A *****"peer reviewed*****" scientific article has been vetted to make sure the data collection and analysis follow the principles of the scientific method.

Examples of journals that you can be assured have been through this process are, Nature, Science, Scientific American, and National Geographic, as well as conference transactions and books; websites include NOAA, NASA, EPA, USGS, as well as university, state, and international research organizations. The New York Times and LA Times are often used as primary sources because it is well established that the articles have been through a rigorous editing and fact checking process. National Inquirer is never used as a primary source.

Wikipedia, although it is a great place to look for links to primary sources, should never be cited as a primary source because although some of the information has been vetted, some have not, and it is hard to tell the difference between the two when they have been integrated in Wikipedia page. Even in an article that cites another article, if you are thinking of using the idea that was in the cited article, make sure you have read the original article to assure the author’s comments are not being used out of context.

Blogs are particularly dangerous. Although blog authors often start off supporting their comments with reference to vetted information, the blogs can sometimes take bazaar twists. I recently had a blog link sent to me by a very well educated friend that started off referring to Jared Diamond’s book *****"Collapse*****" and then veered off on a tyrant that I am sure would have never been the intent of Diamond. The manner in which the piece was written suggested that the author was presenting Diamond’s ideas. This is very scary!

This is my topic: Waste Disposal in Oceans: Plastic

As the World economy has grown, so has its production of wastes. The ocean has long served as a dumping-ground for human beings*****' waste, such as dredge spoil, sewage sludge and most importantly plastic. Plastic plays an important role in the waste disposal in the ocean. According to LA Times, plastic constitutes 90 percent of all trash floating in the world*****'s oceans. The United Nations Environment Program estimated in 2006 that every square mile of ocean has 46,000 pieces of floating plastic. As a concerned citizen I am interested to know what reasons and circumstances led to this massive outlet of waste in the ocean in the name of plastic. I want to specifically study about the exact reasons to why plastic constituted the maximum number of trash floating in the ocean and what measures is the International Law taking to rectify the situation.

This topic is important because the detrimental effects of waste disposal are an environmental issue. The effects are physically visible at trashed beaches, where dead fish and mammals entangled in plastic products are observed. They are additionally reflected in the significant toxic chemical concentrations in fish and other sea life. The accumulations of some toxins, especially mercury, in the bodies of sea life have resulted in some harvestable seafood unfit for human consumption. Seriously affected areas include commercial and recreational fishing, beaches, resorts, human health, and other pleasurable uses of the sea. This topic deserves our attention because we all need to be responsible to protect and care for the ocean which is part of a wonderful environment.