Do you really need that plastic fork with your street food or take away container?

That’s what Caroline Power, a specialist in underwater photography, asked when she posted a series of pictures to Facebook, each depicting a stream of trash floating between the Caribbean islands of Roatan and Cayos Cochinos.

It’s really something you should think about, especially when places like Food Lover’s Market hand them out without asking every time you buy a meal.

Power has dedicated her career to highlighting the damage plastic waste is doing to our oceans, and she described the blankets of plastic and Styrofoam as “devastating,” reports The Telegraph:

“To see something that I care so deeply for being killed, slowly choked to death by human waste was devastating.

“Once the trash is in the ocean, it is incredibly difficult and costly to remove. The key is to stop the trash before it enters the ocean.

“In order for that to happen, we need to improve waste management, environmental education and recycling facilities on a global scale. This is a developed nation (first world) problem as well.

“We were on a dive trip to a set of islands that don’t quite break the ocean surface. They are one of the most pristine dive sites in this part of the Caribbean.

“The photo of the diver in the water was actually over one of these seamounts. To see an area that is supposed to be pristine covered in garbage and trash was disheartening.”

Take one:

She explained how they travelled through the floating garbage for nearly eight kilometres:

“Everywhere we looked, plastic bags of all shapes and sizes: chip bags, ziplocks, grocery, trash, snack bags, other packaging. Some were whole and the rest were just pieces. Sadly, many turtles, fish, whales, and seabirds will mistake those bits of plastic for food.

“We then reached an area about two miles wide that had multiple trash lines that stretched from horizon to horizon.

“There was also a seemingly infinite number of plastic forks, spoons, drink bottles, and plates. There were broken soccer balls, toothbrushes, a tv, and so many shoes and flip flops.”

Take two and three:

Blue Planet Society, an organisation that is campaigning to end overfishing and the overexploitation of the world’s ocean, “believes the rubbish originated from the Motagua River in Guatemala” and washed into the sea during heavy rains”.

About the images, they said:

“We see a lot of shocking images of environmental destruction. This is right up there with the worst.

“Trash from Motagua River in Guatemala polluting Honduras coast has been an issue in region for some time.”

With a lack of infrastructure and education, many people from the area either burn trash or throw it into rivers. Although shocked and angry, they weren’t surprised.

Here are some numbers on plastic in the sea:

Be mindful next time you take a plastic fork or straw for no reason other than convenience.

[source:telegraph]