About 430 million tons of plastic are produced globally each year, two-thirds of which quickly becomes trash. Plastic is the largest share of marine waste, making up at least 85% of all trash in the oceans. If no action is taken, the amount of plastic entering the oceans could triple by 2040.
To counter this problem, scientists use satellites to track plastic waste. A team from Australia has developed a new method that can distinguish between sand, water and plastic based on spectral analysis. This method can detect plastic debris on coasts from over 600 kilometers, opening up the possibility of monitoring even remote locations.
A tool called BPDI (Beach Plastic Debris Index), developed under the direction of Jenna Guffogg of the Melbourne Institute of Technology, uses data from the WorldView-3 satellite. The method has been tested on remote coasts and shown the accuracy of plastic detection surpassing other indices used for similar purposes.
Every year, more than 10 million tons of plastic waste ends up in the oceans, threatening wildlife and ecosystems. Plastic breaks down into micro- and nanoparticles that can be dangerous to marine life – animals often mistake them for food, and items made from this material can often become a trap for various species. Also littered beaches on remote islands are suffering from record amounts of plastic.
Satellite technology can detect floating plastic in the oceans, particularly giant trash islands like the Great Pacific Garbage Patch, which covers about 1.6 million km². However, this technology is ineffective for detecting plastic on land. BPDI solves this problem with a unique spectral index to analyze the reflective properties of materials and accurately distinguish between sand and plastic.
As part of the BPDI tests, researchers placed 14 plastic targets of different sizes and types of plastic on some beaches in Australia. The BPDI index showed high levels of performance compared to other methods that could not always distinguish plastic from shadows or water. According to researcher Mariela Soto-Berelov, BPDI is particularly useful for coastal areas where plastic and water may be present at the same time.
The BPDI provides a way to track the accumulation of plastic on the coasts, which will help in planning cleanup operations. This is in line with the Sustainable Development Goals to protect the marine environment. The next step will be to test BPDI in real-world conditions in collaboration with organizations that monitor and solve the plastic waste problem.
We previously reported on how asteroids could become food in future interplanetary missions.
Provided by universetoday.com
