“On a blissful Monday morning I awoke to a cheerful call from Danielle (EcoOcean office manager), who brightly stated “make sure you eat some bread before sailing, you never know how sea sick you’ll get!” On that note, I boarded a train to Hertziliya wondering what was to happen on such a blissful morning. Once I arrived, I wondered what would occur on my last leg of my EcoOcean journey; cruising the R/V Mediterranean Explorer. While waiting to cast off, Galia Pasternak, who i’d recently ventured with to participate on the marine coastal litter monitoring, came onboard. She stated that today we would examine the micro and macro plastic particles in the water. I assumed that there wouldn’t be much to examine but was excited to learn more.
Captain of the R/V Mediterranean Explorer, Itay Katzman, stated the fundamental rules to follow while onboard and then we began our cruise. Leaving the harbor had a freeing quality about it, and I could feel the sea breeze racing through my veins. I watched as the crew lowered a net that would capture micro and macro plastics that would later be examined by Galia. Once lowered, the R/V Mediterranean Explorer would cruise about 2-knots for a stretch of 2 miles collecting whatever flowed into its grasp.
After three intervals, they examined the particles found and the findings where immense. All types and sizes of plastics where found in the water and I was appalled as well as disgusted by the amount of pollution. At one point during the excursion we thought we spotted a turtle, upon further investigation it turns out it was a welcome mat! Whether on a micro or macro level, water pollution is extremely relevant and prevalent. Though I enjoyed immensely my cruise aboard the R/V Mediterranean Explorer, the excursion put into a sharper perception of the damage we are creating in our oceans.”-Ms. Mirka Narod
Thanks Mirka for these wonderful pictures and for your insightful writing! -EcoOcean
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