Daily Archives: December 27, 2011

Plastic Tide

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There is only two main roads on the island which both follow the coast and meet up at the tip of the island where the Terevake volcano and the ancient workshop for the well known 887 Moai sculptures marks the dead end. Yesterday I did one part towards the North, today I drive the other way. The maximum speed outside of the urban areas is 60km but as the owner of the rental company said: the whole island loop is about 50km and that is also the speed that most islanders use to drive around (the entire island is only 163.6 square kilometres). Half or the whole route is not even paved so on those parts which are full of holes and rocks you’re lucky to make it up to 30km, which is also the maximum speed in the main city on the island.

Whenever I find a place where I can climb down to get close enough to the water I find plastic trash. On one location I find so much plastic that I loose my optimistic spirit. The closer I get to the water, the more I see. And when I focus on the waves I get really sick in my stomach. There is just so much and it is fully integrated in the tidal system, being washed ashore and sucked back into to the ocean again. I decide to leave this beach for what it is and maybe someone else gets a similar feeling when he or she goes of the beaten tourist track and finds this place.

A beautiful beach from a distance.

Closer by…

Floating plastic in the water.

Close up of the waves.