Format: presentation and activity
Length: 45 minutes
Requirements: space for tubs or buckets
Topics/subjects: Environmental impacts of waste, density, scope of pollution
Recommended companion lessons: Waste Audit, West Van Tour
Summary: What happens when plastics enter the ocean? Students find out by exploring the densities of different plastics. They then investigate feeding strategies and locations (surface, pelagic, and benthic) of various ocean animals and predict how plastics will affect marine food webs. The activity ends with students brainstorming actions to reduce the amount of plastics that end up as waste. Thank you to Monterey Bay Aquarium for sharing this lesson with us!
