Plastic Sea
Artist: WITAYA JUNMA
Curator: HAISANG JAVANALIKHIKARA
This project is under FAAMAI Digital Art Hub, Faculty of Fine and Applied Art, Chulalongkorn University
Curator: HAISANG JAVANALIKHIKARA
This project is under FAAMAI Digital Art Hub, Faculty of Fine and Applied Art, Chulalongkorn University
Plastic Sea from witaya junma on Vimeo.
In 2019, Thailand was the 7th biggest marine polluter. Of the one million tonnes of plastic waste pollution in 2019, 0.41 tonnes found its home in the sea, and it included different kinds of plastic products and packaging from our daily lives such as water bottles, foam, plastic bags and plastic straws.
Plastic Sea is an interactive installation* that represents plastic waste data from the seas that surround Thailand by way of illustrating the gravity of water. An interactive participant can select the type of plastic waste and place it in the installation and watch how much plastic waste is found in the sea from 2007 to the present.
By engaging with Plastic Sea, visitors will find that they are contributing to the issue one way or another.
*This interactive installation uses a database provided by the Department Of Marine And Coastal Resources Thailand
WITAYA JUNMA
“Plastic will be the main ingredient of our children’s recipes.”
Anthony T. Hincks
When one thinks of environmental problems, plastic pollution is one of the most crucial issues that this planet is facing. In our consumer society today, plastic has become part of our life and we can’t imagine ourselves living without it. Plastic is in almost everything we touch, from a toothbrush to our clothes, from utensils to electronic gadgets, even nail polish or glitter in our body lotion. It is true that some people may think that the issue of plastic waste is not that serious because plastic is recyclable. Others argue, like Charles J. Moore, that our, “throwaway society cannot be contained - it has gone global. We cannot store and maintain or recycle all our stuff”. And so the plastic that is not recycled gets partially washed into the ocean; pieces of plastic break up in the water, becoming uncountable small shards and fragments of micro plastic flecking throughout the ocean, passing through animals and plants, or water itself, and on to us.
Haisang Javanalikhikara, D.F.A
Anthony T. Hincks
When one thinks of environmental problems, plastic pollution is one of the most crucial issues that this planet is facing. In our consumer society today, plastic has become part of our life and we can’t imagine ourselves living without it. Plastic is in almost everything we touch, from a toothbrush to our clothes, from utensils to electronic gadgets, even nail polish or glitter in our body lotion. It is true that some people may think that the issue of plastic waste is not that serious because plastic is recyclable. Others argue, like Charles J. Moore, that our, “throwaway society cannot be contained - it has gone global. We cannot store and maintain or recycle all our stuff”. And so the plastic that is not recycled gets partially washed into the ocean; pieces of plastic break up in the water, becoming uncountable small shards and fragments of micro plastic flecking throughout the ocean, passing through animals and plants, or water itself, and on to us.
Haisang Javanalikhikara, D.F.A
Ocean Plastic Pollution
At present,Around 80% of the plastic waste in the oceans comes from land, the remaining 20% is from marine-related activities. A staggering 10 million tons of plastic waste is dumped into the oceans around the world each year. In Thailand, it is estimated that more than 30,000 tons of plastic waste enters to rivers, waterways, and the sea yearly. This plastic waste forms huge islands of plastic rubbish that floats across the ocean. And the waste is made up of plastic bottles, bags, cups, straws, food containers, plastic buckets, baskets, micro-plastic particles and other plastic scraps, including those dumped during marine activities (e.g. fishing nets, lines, ropes).
At present,Around 80% of the plastic waste in the oceans comes from land, the remaining 20% is from marine-related activities. A staggering 10 million tons of plastic waste is dumped into the oceans around the world each year. In Thailand, it is estimated that more than 30,000 tons of plastic waste enters to rivers, waterways, and the sea yearly. This plastic waste forms huge islands of plastic rubbish that floats across the ocean. And the waste is made up of plastic bottles, bags, cups, straws, food containers, plastic buckets, baskets, micro-plastic particles and other plastic scraps, including those dumped during marine activities (e.g. fishing nets, lines, ropes).
Plastic is generally a durable material. However, through various natural processes, plastic can be degraded before being washed down into water sources such as river systems and the sea. In particular, the process of photo-degradation can break down the plastic into smaller fragments through exposure to the sun. We call plastic particles degrade to smaller than 5mm as microplastics. These tiny particles continue to break up, becoming smaller and smaller, and they are now found everywhere on the planet, making it almost impossible to identify or remove them from the environment. Furthermore, plastic debris that has been left for a long-time in the water ecosystem can release dangerous pollutants; it can also absorb toxic chemicals from the oceans, acting like a sponge that absorbs the pollution. Obviously, this kind of pollution can be very harmful to organisms in aquatic ecosystems.
|
|
This interactive installation uses a database provided by the Department Of Marine And Coastal Resources Thailand
Thus, the impact of plastic waste and microplastics affects the ecosystem and marine environment both directly and indirectly. Plastic waste such as discarded fishing nets can cover entire coral reefs, pollute seagrass and mangrove forests, damage the ecosystem and poison aquatic animals. Microscopic particles of plastic are invisible and can eaten by plankton and tiny marine creatures which can cause illness and death to various sea animals. Moreover, the impact of plastic garbage can also have a negative effect on the tourism as it degrades the environment – the very thing that tourists want to see and experience scenery. It is inevitable that microplastics will enter our food chain, which could have serious long-term consequences for the future. We have created this problem, so we have only ourselves to blame. By understanding the problem of plastic in the sea, perhaps we can all begin to change how we use plastics in our lives.
Environmental Research Institute, Chulalongkorn University
Thus, the impact of plastic waste and microplastics affects the ecosystem and marine environment both directly and indirectly. Plastic waste such as discarded fishing nets can cover entire coral reefs, pollute seagrass and mangrove forests, damage the ecosystem and poison aquatic animals. Microscopic particles of plastic are invisible and can eaten by plankton and tiny marine creatures which can cause illness and death to various sea animals. Moreover, the impact of plastic garbage can also have a negative effect on the tourism as it degrades the environment – the very thing that tourists want to see and experience scenery. It is inevitable that microplastics will enter our food chain, which could have serious long-term consequences for the future. We have created this problem, so we have only ourselves to blame. By understanding the problem of plastic in the sea, perhaps we can all begin to change how we use plastics in our lives.
Environmental Research Institute, Chulalongkorn University
Exhibitions
"Plastic Sea"exhibition at CU Art 4C, Faculty of Fine and Applied Art, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, Thailand
"Plastic Sea"exhibition at CU Art 4C, Faculty of Fine and Applied Art, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, Thailand