Where are they now...... what to do with the trash???

[starcrest]

as you continue on the rations get used.the tin cans end up on the bottom.but on the way home the 5 gallon sparkletts bottles were emptied never to be refilled again....so overboard they went.wait...heres an idea.....I used the navigational vp-os plotting sheets with indelible markers to write messages....you know the who, what ,when, where ,(and some still wonder why)that was on the way home in 1985,then again in 1990.I sealed the bottles with sealant and duct tape....these bottles are either washed up on some coral atoll,or still afloat  either way they are probably encrusted with marine sea growth and crazed yellow by the sun,crazed yellow like my mind when I wonder ....where are they now....

[Lost Lake]

I was reading the provisioning thread and started wondering..... If you bring along 90 cans of soup and 100 cans of fruit, I can't imagine anyone lets the open cans lie around on a small boat collecting flies.

Do you tie them on behind the boat like a wedding procession car might?   :D

[CapnK]

As with almost any answer: It Depends. :D

In coastal waters, food-y trash goes into the water, paper, plastic, and other stuff that doesn't decay quickly gets toted to a receptacle at the next port. In saltwater, I crush and sink cans. In the short time before they corrode away, they'll provide habitat for wee small critters.

Far out, trash swims with the fishies right away, if it is biodegradable.

Things like 6-pack rings and plastic bags, stuff that marine wildlife might eat or get hurt by, get chopped real fine before disposal, so they won't be a threat.

One could argue against doing so, saying that plastics won't degrade, but it is my considered opinion that it'll decay back into it's constituent elements far faster out there than it will in a landfill, so it's better to do that than carry it to port.

[Auspicious]

LOL -- I like the imagery of the cans trailing behind the boat.

What you do with them depends on where you are.

If you are offshore -- really offshore (12 nm is the rule, but I generally wait a full day) -- you can cut the top and bottom off the can and dump it over the side.

Inshore I wash cans out carefully with sea water and crush them flat (again removing top and bottom of the can).

How you dispose of them depends on where you make landfall. Many islands in warmer latitudes simply don't have the infrastructure to responsibly (my opinion, my judgment) dispose of trash. I'd rather dump stuff well offshore than have someone on the other side of dumpster heaving stuff into the surf. In the US it is off course more an issue of finding a dumpster you can use.

I would like to add that even offshore I separate recyclables from other trash. I can't always recycle at landfall, but I don't want to have to pick through garbage to do it.

Foodstuff and other organics go over the side until we are to close to shore, then they are bagged. Glass and metal goes over the side until near shore at which point they are cleaned and bagged. Plastics are always cleaned and bagged; it is illegal (international treaty and convention and most national laws) to dump plastic over the side.

I haven't participated, but I understand that cruisers in the Bahamas often have trash-burning parties on the beach to dispose of trash, including plastics, and bury the ashes rather than use the questionable trash disposing "systems" in the islands.

[CharlieJ]

except for aluminum cans- those things last for YEARS. I've snorkeled in the Keys and found cans on the bottom that may have been 4 or 5 years old- paint gone, but can in perfect shape.

Not so with veggie cans- they rust quickly.

Unless we are anchored in a really pristine spot, we put food scraps overboard. Fish eat a good bit of it, and crabs to the rest.  Inshore EVERYTHING else comes back with us. Offshore bottles get filled and sunk, cans are perforated and sunk. Plastics of any kind STILL comes back with us.

Of course we make efforts to repackage food stuffs, etc before we leave. No sense in carrying un-needed plastic wrappings and containers along unless they are really needed.

In talking with a few long term cruisers, I found that many carried paper, etc ashore on deserted beaches and had a fire periodically- preferable below high tide line so no residue remained.

Trash is a major problem on some small islands -they really have no way of dealing with the accumulation, so if cruising folks carry more ashore, it overburdens the local efforts even more.


And in some areas, for instance Floridas Dry Tortugas you may be away from a good place to dump for several weeks, so at least SOME of it has to go. Or have a good place to store bags of garbage until you get back to Key West. And believe me, THAT can get stinky unless you carefully wash out any containers.

Tough question.

[Sonnie]

After recently provisioning my boat for the Bahamas, I was AMAZED at the amount of packaging that I would normally take forgranted as a landlubber. After cruisuing down the east coast, I've realized that the best way to manage your trash onboard is to bring as little as possible in the first place! I must have purchased a thousand dollars worth of groceries and it seemed that once I was done removing all of the excess packaging I had two almost equal piles - One of food, the other of garbage!

Cheers,
Sonnie.

[Lynx]

It is just to easy to take it to a trash can someplace. I need it about every 3 to 7 days. Never dump overboard.

[AdriftAtSea]

I can't believe you'd advocate throwing even finely chopped up plastic.  Many marine lifeforms will mistake even small bits of plastic for food, and can die from ingesting indigestible plastic.  Aside from the effects it may have on marine life, it is also against the MARPOL treaty and heavy fines can result.  

Of course, a MARPOL trash disposal placard is only required on boats >26' LOA, so you probably don't have one aboard.


Cans, particularly steel "tin" cans, are readily degradable in the ocean.  Aluminum cans are less so.  But, both cans and glass are relatively safe to dispose of overboard, especially if filled with water or broken down.  

Food waste, should generally be thrown overboard.  It generally will be eaten quite readily by birds, fish, etc.  

As with almost any answer: It Depends. :D

In coastal waters, food-y trash goes into the water, paper, plastic, and other stuff that doesn't decay quickly gets toted to a receptacle at the next port. In saltwater, I crush and sink cans. In the short time before they corrode away, they'll provide habitat for wee small critters.

Far out, trash swims with the fishies right away, if it is biodegradable.

Things like 6-pack rings and plastic bags, stuff that marine wildlife might eat or get hurt by, get chopped real fine before disposal, so they won't be a threat.

One could argue against doing so, saying that plastics won't degrade, but it is my considered opinion that it'll decay back into it's constituent elements far faster out there than it will in a landfill, so it's better to do that than carry it to port.

[CapnK]

I always thought that the MARPOL req's applied specifically to ships of:

• 400 tons or more,
• 15 passengers or more,
• 12 meters or more (36' LOA, not 26')

Rereading MARPOL annex V, it does not specifically exclude smaller vessels, so I'm guessing that my understanding has been wrong. I didn't think it applied to small cruising vessels, now I am not so sure that that is the case.

To be safe - Guess I'm toting it home from now on. :)

[CapnK]

Oh - and fish aren't going to eat just any old bit of plastic just because it's there. Trust me - I've drug a lot of it in front of them, even fish-shaped fish-smelling plastics, *trying* to get them to eat it. ;) It has to be just right for them to go for it. Ask any offshore fisherman, they'll tell you the same.

Fish are a lot smarter than you'd think. ;D

[AdriftAtSea]

No, MARPOL applies to all sea going vessels... regardless of size.  However, in the USA, only vessels larger than 26' LOA are required to have a MARPOL placard posted.

Rereading MARPOL annex V, it does not specifically exclude smaller vessels, so I'm guessing that my understanding has been wrong. I didn't think it applied to small cruising vessels, now I am not so sure that that is the case.

To be safe - Guess I'm toting it home from now on. :)

[Zen]

THANK YOU!!! Plastic kills in the ocean no mater what size it is!!!!! There was a good size thread on this here.

I can't believe you'd advocate throwing even finely chopped up plastic.  Many marine lifeforms will mistake even small bits of plastic for food, and can die from ingesting indigestible plastic.  Aside from the effects it may have on marine life, it is also against the MARPOL treaty and heavy fines can result. 

Of course, a MARPOL trash disposal placard is only required on boats >26' LOA, so you probably don't have one aboard.


Cans, particularly steel "tin" cans, are readily degradable in the ocean.  Aluminum cans are less so.  But, both cans and glass are relatively safe to dispose of overboard, especially if filled with water or broken down. 

Food waste, should generally be thrown overboard.  It generally will be eaten quite readily by birds, fish, etc. 

As with almost any answer: It Depends. :D

In coastal waters, food-y trash goes into the water, paper, plastic, and other stuff that doesn't decay quickly gets toted to a receptacle at the next port. In saltwater, I crush and sink cans. In the short time before they corrode away, they'll provide habitat for wee small critters.

Far out, trash swims with the fishies right away, if it is biodegradable.

Things like 6-pack rings and plastic bags, stuff that marine wildlife might eat or get hurt by, get chopped real fine before disposal, so they won't be a threat.

One could argue against doing so, saying that plastics won't degrade, but it is my considered opinion that it'll decay back into it's constituent elements far faster out there than it will in a landfill, so it's better to do that than carry it to port.

[Zen]

Any  & all vessels!

[Zen]

let's not forget:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LpaSewyddd4

[AdriftAtSea]

Any time Zen... :)  

THANK YOU!!! Plastic kills in the ocean no mater what size it is!!!!! There was a good size thread on this here.

I can't believe you'd advocate throwing even finely chopped up plastic.  Many marine lifeforms will mistake even small bits of plastic for food, and can die from ingesting indigestible plastic.  Aside from the effects it may have on marine life, it is also against the MARPOL treaty and heavy fines can result. 

Of course, a MARPOL trash disposal placard is only required on boats >26' LOA, so you probably don't have one aboard.


Cans, particularly steel "tin" cans, are readily degradable in the ocean.  Aluminum cans are less so.  But, both cans and glass are relatively safe to dispose of overboard, especially if filled with water or broken down. 

Food waste, should generally be thrown overboard.  It generally will be eaten quite readily by birds, fish, etc. 

As with almost any answer: It Depends. :D

In coastal waters, food-y trash goes into the water, paper, plastic, and other stuff that doesn't decay quickly gets toted to a receptacle at the next port. In saltwater, I crush and sink cans. In the short time before they corrode away, they'll provide habitat for wee small critters.

Far out, trash swims with the fishies right away, if it is biodegradable.

Things like 6-pack rings and plastic bags, stuff that marine wildlife might eat or get hurt by, get chopped real fine before disposal, so they won't be a threat.

One could argue against doing so, saying that plastics won't degrade, but it is my considered opinion that it'll decay back into it's constituent elements far faster out there than it will in a landfill, so it's better to do that than carry it to port.

[AdriftAtSea]

Good video Zen... grog to you for it. :)

Did you notice the research vessel is a sailboat.. :) It's a big catamaran from what I can see in the video. :)

[CapnK]

That was a great video, I'd highly recommend to anyone who sees this thread that you take the 7 minutes needed to see it. I obviously didn't read the earlier thread here that was mentioned. Grog, Zen! Learn something new every day! :)

It's a damned shame, some of what you learn. :( I had no idea there was that much plastic out there, you can bet that I won't be putting any more out there myself. Although on a chart that gyre is probably pretty small compared to all the Pacific, I also know that it'll only get bigger, concurrent with more and more human population increase, all wanting 'modern conveniences'... And sadly I don't expect that to change anytime soon, so it's easy to see that the problem will only get worse...  ::)  :'(

"Ishmael", by Daniel Quinn. It makes me think of that book.

That they are using a hybrid-engined sailboat as their research vessel - it's good to see people *practicing* what they *preach*, that is all too rare. Kudos to them! :)

Here's a link to the blog, great reading:
http://orvalguita.blogspot.com/

[CapnK]

PS - Passing the link on, too!

[Zen]

A round of grog mate!  ;D

[Lost Lake]

Sorry CapnK, I didn't mean for anyone to answer me and incriminate themselves! Good to hear that you will bring your plastic home though. I never knew there was a garbage problem in the oceans though so I'm glad I brought this up.

I was just planning my first week long cruise and wondered if it was kosher to toss food overboard, and also wondered if cruisers put trash in a netted bag overboard, or sealed it and kept it onboard, or whatever.

Thanks for all the advice everyone!