Dish a Fish

Dish a Fish

            I participated in the Heal the Bay beach clean-up, contributing my time and help clean a part of Dockweiler Beach. I picked up some incredible trash unfortunately; I did not bring the trash back with me to make an art project. However, I did go to a beach and did my own clean-up. I found many interesting trash in San Pedro’s beach. My art project is made from trash that people leave behind or dump in the beaches.

            My art project is a fish that is presented as food. The outside of the fish is made out of a beer cap, a cigarette bud, a shirt tag, a packet of gum, and a small hand towel. But the surprise is what the fish contains inside its body. The second image shows the insides of the fish which is made out of the bottom part of the sandal, a bottle cap, candy wrapper, a packet of gum, plastic, paper, foam, cigarette, and a shirt tag. The second image shows the trash that the fish has eaten which is the trash we make from our homes, parks, and more places which then makes its way out into the ocean. Fishes are highly intoxicated with chemicals and the small pieces of trash in the ocean.

            On the home website of The Science Education Resource Center at Carleton College (SERC), - On the Cutting Edge, - Geology and Human Health, Gianna Andrews presents the case on “Plastics in the Ocean Affecting Human Health.” The author presents their case of plastic circulating the Great Pacific Garbage Patch and that trash takes years to decompose entirely. Andrews says, “The worse part is, these plastics don’t biodegrade, so they brake up into tiny pieces that are consumed by fish and sea mammals.” All marine animals are being intoxicated by the smallest particle. With fishes being contaminated it affects the food chain in our system because we can become contaminated without knowing if the fish we eat has contamination. We put ourselves in danger when polluting our oceans and sea animals.

            For the people who trash our oceans and harm our marine animals with or without noticing be aware that you risk your own health too. Help keep our beaches clean by picking up the trash we leave behind and not dumping it on the floor. We can also do clean-ups with organizations like Heal the Bay and make a difference in our environment.eHh Let us keep our environment clean and our marine animals’ habitats safe from our pollution.  

Work Cited

Andrews, Gianna. Plastics in the Ocean Affecting Human Health. The Science Education Resource Center at Carleton College, 16 Sept. 2013. Web. 3 June 2014.