Wave After Wave of Garbage Hits the Dominican Republic
- 2018-07-27
- The New York Times
The Caribbean nation is known for sapphire seas and ivory beaches, but it is grappling with waves of garbage washing up on its shores, a vivid reminder of the presence of thousands of tons of plastic in the world’s oceans.
Those piles, most notably the "Great Pacific Garbage Patch," are usually far from human settlements, to say nothing of resort destinations.
Images have shown teams using pikes, shovels and excavators to lift the garbage, only to be met with new waves carrying even more.
The images are shocking, but perhaps not for people who live in the Dominican Republic. “It happens pretty much all the time if there is a strong rainfall or a storm,” said Cyrill Gutsch, the founder of Parley for the Oceans, in a telephone interview.