Scientists make worrying discovery while investigating Lake Tahoe: 'There's a lot of education we can do'

[Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin]

The first study of large pieces of plastic waste in Lake Tahoe produced disconcerting results.

Published in Applied Spectroscopy in September, the paper showed the tourist hotspot on the California-Nevada border was inundated with an average of 133 pieces of plastic per mile, Newsweek reported.

What happened?

At 1,645 feet, Lake Tahoe is the third-deepest lake in North America and 10th-deepest in the world, per Visit Lake Tahoe. It covers 191 square miles with about 72 miles of shoreline.

Newsweek reported that other studies have shown microplastics abound in the lake as well but that this survey was the first to investigate “larger chunks of plastic waste.”

https://www.msn.com/en-us/lifestyle/lifestyle-buzz/scientists-make-worrying-discovery-while-investigating-lake-tahoe-there-s-a-lot-of-education-we-can-do/ar-AA1mYbqO

Probably drunk tourists throwing their garbage overboard.

[orthoclad]

1. Here's one cause:

probably from floating docks breaking up in storms
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2024/jan/10/lake-tahoe-polluted-styrofoam-beads
(and drunken tourists)

Around 40 years ago I started talking about future archaeologists describing the "styrofoam layer". Back when "plastic" was still considered an insult.